Monday, February 27, 2012

Virtual Sandbox Time

Give a kid a chance to play, and they may just teach us something!

It still amazes me how young children can pick up new technologies, like Apple’s iPad, and begin to manipulate objects on the screen without too much direction. Children certainly share an excitement for playing around with something new, and learning what they can do with it. They simply have no fear of failure. In fact, I have never heard an elementary student say, “But I’m afraid I might break it.” Where do some adults lose that curiosity? Or gain a fear of failure or feel frustration with trying something new?
Kids are just naturally great at discovering and exploring new things. Whether it was a sandbox or water table from our youth, or a mobile tablet for today’s children, trying something new is exciting and fun! Unfortunately, this play time doesn’t always translate in the educational setting. 
Due to time constraints, program directives, or adults’ comfort levels, activities and lessons using technology can become very programatic. By that I mean children are often asked to perform similar, if not exactly the same, tasks as they just observed an adult doing, otherwise known as listen and mimic (copy/paste method). Although this technique can be useful at times to teach basic tech skills, children really need to feel successful on their own. The only way a student truly learns is when they are asked to problem solve somewhat on their own, or through collaborative groups of their peers. These learned skills will stick with a child much longer, and derive more meaning, than any copy and paste activity provides.
Don’t get me wrong, certain skills such as citizenship, group work behavior and expectations, problem solving strategies, and basic skills and background knowledge of the curriculum content and the technology being used needs to be taught. This is especially true in the early elementary grades as a base knowledge, however, open ended projects, presentations, or exploration in which a student can choose the tool they use can be highly beneficial. Playing around with something new, or finding ways to express their findings in a unique way can build upon 21st century skills and promote life-long adaptable learning. A skill that all students will need to know in order to be successful in their lives.
Technology settings are often focused on a single user. One child sitting at a computer, tablet, or other form of technology working on an individual project. Instead, let children get up browse around to see what their peers are doing, allow them to ask critical questions, and find new and inventive ways to use a tool to present, create, communicate and publish their work for feedback. Give them the opportunity to try something new and to fail without feeling defeated. They need to learn from their mistakes, and find ways to work around them. We need to encourage our children to play and explore in the physical and virtual sandbox, but also to reflect and present their findings to adults and their peers. They will become better problem solvers as they build their toolkit for the future.