Our museums and galleries house fascinating collections, from living bugs to The Beatles, fine art to photography, the Titanic to ancient Egypt.
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Our museums and galleries house fascinating collections, from living bugs to The Beatles, fine art to photography, the Titanic to ancient Egypt.
Find Your Talent
A creative recycling pilot project in St Helens drew influence from the Reggio Emilia approach, where an artist and an educationalist work alongside each other in equal collaboration. The four week pilot formed part of Find Your Talent in St Helens and took place in March 2010. The internationally acclaimed approach used unusual and ordinary recycled objects as stimulus for children's play, learning, physical, social and creative development.
The imaginative sourcing and use of found materials which are then recycled for open ended and creative play by children is considered innovative. The collaboration between artist and early years practitioner or educationalist to maximise the learning benefits for children is also recognised as groundbreaking.
In the UK a number of organisations have used this approach, creating dedicated spaces that can be utilised by children, early practitioners and parents. For more information on these organisations see North Tyneside Council and WEAVE.
During Year 1 of Find Your Talent (2008-09), early years practitioners in St Helens showed enthusiasm about the Reggio Emilia Approach through their attendance at CPD sessions and study trips.
Playing with cellophane
The creative recycling approach was also piloted at the St Helens Festival in July 2009. Normally a 'house of objects' is an interior setting, sometimes with access to an outdoor space alongside. However, at the festival a small tent was used to create a resource space for children, parents and families. Feedback from parents and children to the 'tent of objects' was universally positive and we want to build on this interest in the pilot project
Research was also undertaken in the more conventional setting of children's centres in the Find Your Talent target areas. The evaluation of the research helped to determine what would work most effectively for the creative recycling centre approach, which settings supported it, and how the learning of the child is optimised. It also helped to define the potential roles of the artist, early years practitioner and parents in the process and informed the way in which the 4 week pilot project worked. The photos here give a flavour of the way in which children and their parents get involved in a creative learning process in this kind of project.
For more information, or to get involved, please contact Nicola on 07827988474, or email Nicola Clarke.
All images are courtesy of Claire Weetman, Visual Artist.
