The pressure to perform

Today i was thinking about how the pressure to perform, or the pressure occupy children can lead us to some very unmeaningful experiences.

When in the fact if you turn that upside down and put it on its head, then you have the ability to listen, and the intuitiveness to let children's agendas gracefully appear.

The reason i am writing this is because i see it happening all the time at Play and Learn, many of the teachers i work with have the most amazing ability to listen without the pressure to perform, and have the gracefulness of listening without over suggesting.

This is something i have been trying to learn from them, and i think it is getting there.
Perhaps i have always been full of my ideas and the shift to make it more about children's ideas is a balance situation that takes time.

In my study with children and creativity i keep having little break throughs and yesterday i had another one with control and inspiration i want to share with you.

In my setting at Play and Learn, everything is available for children, there is no set agenda for teachers, we follow children's ideas.

In the morning when i arrived a few children gathered around the art table to make cards, i saw they were interested in presentation of cards more than the message of cards, they cut and rolled card and tied around them.

So i offered them a container of ribbons, that kept there curisoities going for quite some time.

We talked through what kind of holding materials they wanted and all agreed cellotape was going to do the job and off they went.
No teacher input was needed after this, and is mostly the case with our competent older children.

But the first timers, and curious on lookers were there at this time, they usually are.
They have a pattern, they come and go, they start something, discard it and leave, they want someting that someone else has, it is the beginning dance of involvement.
Similar to the Dance of Avoidance in 'Creative Authenticity' Ian Roberts,Atelier Saint-Luc Press 2004. (look it up, it is informative )

They pull you from what is happening, into there own space of thinking, but it is raw and it pushes all your control buttons, half of you wants to protect this group that are achieving so much, the other half of you wants to see the dance gain momentum and just stick to an idea, so it a time of conflict.

Thinking about it, the group well into there ideas are already on there path, they do not need protection, once the idea is there and you have found your resources, then the experience is ready to be your own.

The dancing involvers however are the ones that need some support.

Cellotape gets a bit tricky for some smaller hands, so we have these rolls of long white stickers that i offered as a suggestion for some younger children.

Here they are committing to an idea, and what a glorious idea it became, it was so popular it took on followers, it inspired others.

This is creativity and vision at its best, this is letting ideas fly and setting your own agenda.

But still your control barriers pop there little heads up, especially if you are tired.
Mine multiply when i am tired, i am generally not fazed about mess, but when i am tired i have this crazy desire for places to look tidy or i dont function too well.
So as the paper that the stickers are on is growing by the mile and getting crushed and screwed and skated around the room, and as the concentration and involvement and intensity is being displayed in there work, i am there saying i want you to pick up all the paper now please.

Of course they are ignoring me.
Because they are busy, they are following through still, committing to the idea, finishing a piece.
Suddenly i see it for what it is, and my control barriers are pushed away by my admirance, and my delight and amusement in there message.

And as i let go, more happened, i got the stories, Cars! So cars where added, planes where added.
It was a hub of activity for sometime, another teacher came and tried to talk to the children about what they were doing, but to talk in depth at that time took there concentration away and they were so very committed that words were not really needed.

So this is my lesson in letting go and the power of ideas and committment to ideas.
later on i offered the children a paper rubbish bin, and they had just as much fun peeling the stickers off as they did putting them on, and i showed them how to roll the unused sticker sheets up.
Listening was not a compromise at that point.
So it also taught me that we need to be very careful with our timing, so as not to make children compromise there work.

Happy idea making.