Learning Plan (Bachelor of Education – Early childhood)
Topic:
Title of experience:
Links to the Early Years
Learning Framework:
Date:
Scavenger Hunt
Outdoor sensory motor scavenger hunt (The Inspired Treehouse, 2014)
Outcome 4:
Children are Confident and Involved Learners Children develop a range of skills and processes
such as problectim solving, inquiry,
experimentation, hypothesising, researching and
investigating (Department of Education,
Employment and Workplace Relations and Council
of Australian Governments [DEEWR & CAG], 2009, Content/ concepts
being explored:
p. 35)
28/5/2015
Age group:
3-5


Explore their environment
Engaging in an environment where children
are encouraged to explore, experiment and
take appropriate risks in their learning
 Use their senses to explore natural and built
Environments
Children resource their own learning through
connecting with people,
place, technologies and natural and processed
materials (DEEWR & CAG, 2009, p. 35)
Rationale:
The children love the outdoor environment and combining a sensory exercise provides the opportunity for the children to explore the play yard. It will also
lead to discovering other objects within the yard, such as snails and worms as well as movement, touch and interaction with other children and other
equipment.
Child/Children’s Background Knowledge:
The children are familiar with their back play yard and many of the children spend most of their day outside (except at group time and meal times). They have
undertaken digging, free play and various nature play activities in the past. This will extend upon their knowledge of the play yard by exploring other areas
and thinking about the yard and items and how they can be utilized differently.
Learning Objectives:
Gross motor skills, coordination, balance, motor control, sensory integration, visual perceptual skills. Children will not be expected to complete all tasks but at
least five tasks should be attainable. All children play in the yard therefore making this experience relevant to all children. Exercise will be undertaken in the
afternoon when free outside play is available. There is no restriction on the time that will be taken to achieve this task.
Teacher Focus/ Intentionality:
Teaching focus will be about exploration and children identifying different items in the yard. It is predicted that children will find items that meet their interest.
The teacher will also focus on using their senses and exploring each item that they are finding. The exercise focuses on the ‘Being’ where children are free to
‘seek and make meaning of the world’ (DEEWR & CAG, 2009, p7) and is accessible to all children from ages 3-5.
Environment and Resources:
Put some footsteps on the floor. Make some binoculars for the children and place in a basket. Pots of crayons and pencils and boards with scavenger
sheets. Create a station for young explorers to start their hunt from. Camera to catch the action. Experience to take place in the back play area.
Assessment Strategies:
Assessment will be through observation and note taking as well as photographing children using their senses. Recording observations informally through
note taking will assist in reporting any developmental or learning challenges that the children may have and be reported to the staff (Cheeseman, 2012).
Stage
Approx.
Time
Pre-Service Teacher’s Actions
Child Actions /Tasks
Stage 1
Introduction
11am
Introduction through group time and reading ‘Going
on a bear hunt’. Introduce the footsteps the teacher
will explain what is required to complete the
scavenger hunt.
The children’s excitement will lead them to the hunting station.
Children will ask questions about what is required and gather a
clipboard, pen and scavenger hunt form.
12.30pm
Stage 2
Main Body
Teacher to escort children to assist with reading,
questions, document through camera and record
comments. Allow the children to use the objects as
they fit.
Children to explore the yard and look for items that meet the
items on the form. Children to assist each other with finding
objects.
Provocations:



Stage 3:
Conclusion
2pm
What else do you use this object for?
Are there similar objects in the yard that do
the same function?
How long can you do that task for? Ie
balancing
At group time, talk to the children about the
experience and some of the objects that they found
and their particular uses. Ask the children to reflect
upon their hunt and what challenges they had.
Children to respond to questions and share experiences. After
group time, children to wash hands ready for snack time.
Evaluation and Self Reflection:
The experience did not quite go to plan. Due to reading the story ‘Going on a bear hunt’, children were more excited about finding a bear than to experience
the senses available to them in the play yard. There were five children that undertook the challenge. Three were engaged for at least five of the experiences,
one was engaged for three of the experiences and one was engaged for one of the experiences. This was due to the experience being teacher led and not
child led and therefore, the children did not fully understand the exercise. To improve the experience, less tasks could be created, tasks to be restructured
where the children could experience and discover for themselves. The introduction to the experience could be changed where it was more oriented towards
undertaking a hunt in general and not specifically looking for an item.
Follow-up:
Create posters in the yard where children could identify through pictures and hunt for similar objects, for example a tree, how many trees can you find in the
yard? What do you use the trees for? Who lives in the trees? And generally be guided by the child’s interest.
Mentor Teacher Comments:
“Fiona and I shared a great discussion about the challenge she had with
this experience. We talked about using visual cues, adult driven as
opposed to child driven focus. Fiona is highly reflective. This is a huge
asset and will ultimately help her develop into a great educator.”
Pre-service Teacher final reflection:
The discussion with the mentor provided me with a new perspective on
undertaking this exercise in the future. For future sensory exercises, I will
consider more explicitly how they can explore their environment confidently,
ensure it is child led, have them engage in an environment and take more
appropriate risks and think more about how they can use their senses to
explore the environment. This exercise was a good example to use my
reflection skills and consider how I can plan for group learning in everyday
interactions. Future considerations will include questioning, planning,
implementing and reflection. In my planning for future similar activities,
speculating about what might happen and why will also assist in successful
exercises (Arthur et al, 2012).