In our nest making inquiry, we are inspired by Ingold (2000) who reminds us that “the forms of artefacts are not supposed to have their source within the human mind, as preconceived intellectual solutions to particular design problems” (p. 340).  In our inquiry is not the children who are always in control of what will […]

A walk to the park delivers!  The city’s squirrels and a group of geese join the inquiry.  After children leave a nest besides a tree, a squirrel approaches to check the nest out.  Picking up the clay nest, the squirrel moves the nest to the other side of the tree. The children and the squirrels […]

After several weeks of nest and egg making, we (educators) decided to surprise the children. We met to make nests. We became fascinated with nests – as much as the children have.   Our clay nests are received with great excitement.  The children continue to make nests and discuss the possibilities for each nest. We decide to study […]

Our clay exploration intensifies as children declare that we are going to ‘make nests’. Children gently learn how to shape the clay, what the clay needs to move, how the clay responds, where to press, how to push. The focus, though, is on the nests themselves. We make nests: big nests, small nests. Each single […]

Clay arrives in a large, rectangular, cardboard box. I carefully pull it out and place sliced small slabs on the large canvas that covers half of the classroom. A group of curious children gather around the clay. Clay is quickly transformed. Rolled into various sized balls. Carried in tiny hands. Flung and thrown onto the canvas. […]