Learning Story: A Silent Dialogue Between the Hands and Clay

The story that we want to share with you is simple yet powerful. It is about a beautiful moment in the atelier that I had the honor of documenting. It speaks to us about the child and the materials, particularly clay.

Jordan had opened the studio space between the three- and four-year-old classrooms. The fours were given the provocation of a chunk of clay and wire. They were left to explore at their own pace and rhythm. B had been in the studio for a while, so I stepped in to see what had captured his attention. Over the next twenty minutes, I documented his story. There are over sixty images of this moment. I want to share with you many of these images and the story of his hands and head becoming one as the clay speaks to him and he responds.


As the story begins, we find B “talking" to the clay with the wire. His hands slowly read and absorb the message of the clay.

                                                

      

Responding to the clay, he begins to carefully move the wires through the clay, as if he were a master jeweler cutting a facet into a diamond. His hands move with deliberation and precision!

Each slice is sized by his skillful eye.









He appears as if he is having a deep, silent conversation with the clay and the clay with him.

Finally a small round ball emerges from his hands.  


 

What will he do now?








Slowly he flattens the clay. He begins to pinch small pieces of clay

from the large chunk. Again, he deliberately places pieces one at a time
onto the flat base.

He makes his way slowly around, piece by piece. We watch as he goes back around to each, pinching them into place, securing their position.

Wondering if he is finished, we watch as
he then begins to roll up one piece of clay
at a time.  One by one, these pieces are
placed inside the clay structure.

As suddenly as he began, he ends. The nest with five eggs is complete!

This moment with B was beautiful to witness. To watch a child engage with the materials at this level was incredible. Although not a word was spoken until he finished, we clearly see his thinking made visible to us. In his revisiting the medium that day, we find that he was connecting to the medium in new and challenging ways. The wonder of his learning could be felt and seen through the engagement of his hands with the clay.

Because clay is such a forgiving medium, we find that it allows B to wonder, explore, and challenge himself from within. Many strategies are at work, such as how to slice the clay and how to attach the pieces to make them stay in place. This moment was priceless to observe!

The atelier speaks to B in so many ways that we have yet to see. He clearly sees this space as his for the asking, so to speak. The atelier is a space in which he feels safe to express himself in new ways, a space that challenges and scaffolds his learning.

As teachers, we need to be attuned to B and be ready to listen to the dialogues that he is seeking with the multitude of media available to him. We see this strength reflected in his work in the block area. We need to be ready to provide him with provocations that scaffold his thinking

Family Reflections:
What do you value about this learning story? What struck me immediately was the way the Learning Story was written about B -  how words like “beautiful moment” and “honor of documenting” were included. I was floored when I read that from a teacher observing my child. How honored we are as parents to have such people educating our child!!! To have the educators value our child as we do! I value the insight into B’s time in the atelier that I never get to witness. His devotion to the art of “creation” in whatever medium it may be is very exciting.

How does this speak to you about your child’s strengths and competencies?
I am pleasantly surprised to notice that he is showing attention to detail, taking his time to enjoy and explore things that interest him. B is a person who is just simply “satisfied” - he loves life, food, people. When you described him as a master jeweler cutting a facet in a diamond, it didn’t surprise me but gladdened me that you noticed the same things we do.

Talk to your child about this learning story. Have your child share what they think about the learning story and record verbatim what your child says:
I was making a nest and then there were eggs in it and I was trying to make the Mommy bird but I couldn’t make it so I didn’t make it. I made little balls to fit in the nest. They were eggs. I found a piece on the ground attached to a tennis shoe and I put it on the inside. Ms. Jordan gave me the wires so I could cut big since I didn’t have a knife. I told Ms. Jordan I liked the atelier.


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