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Video transcript
Yvonne Paujik
Kindergarten teacher
So what we did with the clay today pretty much fits into Identity. And that’s to see what is special about being you. And it gives them that sense of belonging, and that’s really important.
When you feel like you belong, you feel comfortable, and that’s when your relationships will start and that’s when the real learning takes place
So we had a clay experience today. And the idea of that was for them to look at — we had mirrors — to look at the mirrors and to see and I suppose to draw or to communicate what they were looking at, what was staring back at them.
So we had a boy who did an amazing job at the clay. We started off by looking at the mirror and just identifying himself and highlighting his features. You know, he’s got short hair, he’s got a pointy nose … I know he said somewhere in there that he’s got sharp teeth.
So just identifying what he saw about himself, why he was special. And then I guess transferring that into a drawing, a 2D drawing. So for this boy specifically, he was … I guess there was a lot of identity, but also a lot of literacy there, communicating through a different medium. And we believe in that so much, giving children opportunities to express themselves through a different medium, and he did.
So he used his hands and what he saw, what he made, and that was what he was telling me. He was looking at sharp teeth, he was looking at ears with holes in there, and he was looking at spiky hair because he just had a haircut.
So there are lots of ways we can help them out too so that they feel quite comfortable within the space. And so many today called out and said, ‘Oh, it’s my favourite game!’ I said, ‘Oh, well, that’s great.’ And then they often take it on, and if they’ve counted six then they’ll say, ‘Well, that’s seven people going: it’s six plus one more, the person who rolled the dice.’ I think: it’s maths! Maths is around children everywhere. So it’s really exciting
Yvonne
I like what you’re doing there Elijah. If you need extra clay, just let me know.
Child 1
Those are my eyelashes.
Yvonne
Oh, you’re doing your eyelashes. I can see that, yeah. Just … and your hair too. Is that your … part of the eyelash?
Child 2
Yeah. I already did my sharp teeth here.
Yvonne
Elijah is planting his eyes inside — that’s a good technique, making little holes first. That’s it.
I guess I wanted them to see what were the similarities between each other, but also seeing what was different about each other. And from there, celebrating what was special about them.
- Last updated:
- 24 July 2025
