Reposted by JooloneJoolone @joolone.bsky.social · 17/11/2024Nursery Child: “I’ve written a story” “Tell me more” I respond Child: “It’s about all the children saying goodbye to their mummies & daddies in the morning. I’m going to read it to everyone at Circle Time” Me: “Can’t wait!” Child: “It’s a big story” She reads it to 34 children. 7578
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 17/07/2025Yes! My mind is blown by the simplicity and graphic directness of the drawing. A parting gift on the last day at school - a sad elephant. The crumpled trunk… Genius. 010
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 17/07/2025A Nursery child draws an elephant with wonderful succinctness. A simple expressive line and perfectly judged areas of tone capture the imagination: “I’ve drawn it for you…It’s sitting down and feeling sad because it’s the last day of school…and his trunk is crumpled up” Utter Joy! 2379
Reposted by JooloneJoolone @joolone.bsky.social · 16/11/2024That wonderful moment when a young child gives you a drawing and you realise they’ve handed you a window into their world of development - a synchronous exploration of motor control, marks, linear expression, writing, shape and space. Each nourishing the other. Joy! 3688
Reposted by JooloneJoolone @joolone.bsky.social · 16/11/2024What do you give to life, when life has it all? The effort of being original, is like a thank you. Wayne Shorter. 0125
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 12/07/2025Nursery child invites us into some thinking on shape and space: “I’ve made a face do you want to see? You turn the circle and the mouth can be happy or sad… But I can’t decide if square eyes are happier than triangle eyes!” We look, wonder and I see what he means. Joy! 0222
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 06/07/2025“I’ve drawn the Taj Mahal by a beautiful rainbow river” ‘They’re so beautiful’ I respond “Do you know what the numbers are?” the child asks “The doors?” “No…they are the way I drew them, I started with 1, I did 2, and 3 and 4 and 5 and 6 and then I glued them on the river” 0122
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 29/06/2025He follows up by independently sorting the Montessori beads on a study table. “I’ll put out ones, twos, threes all the way to 10” He counts in each denomination with growing fluency as he lays them out, stopping regularly to check & count 1-1 “When I get to 10’s I know them!” 000
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 28/06/2025So beautifully put! Thanks, Sue. And such a resounding yes! 010
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 28/06/2025“Those who desire to sing… find a song.” Plato. So much of teaching is finding your own voice: a voice that inspires learners to discover theirs, and sing boldly themselves. When I find my song, I’ll sing it with all my heart. 010
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 22/06/2025Nursery child simultaneously unpacks his thinking about number & the Montessori number bead box: “The 5’s go 5, 10, 15 4’s go 4, 8, 12 3’s go 3, 6, 9 I haven’t done 6’s but I think they go 6, 12: I’ve been thinking about it, and I haven’t thought about the 9’s yet” Joy! 1100
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 21/06/2025A question that shadows every lesson: At what point does my hand, meant to lift, hold pupils back? 030
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 17/06/2025‘…starting points for intuition and rigour…’ Love that Edward! 🙌 Yes 🙌 ! 010
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 17/06/2025She returns bringing Grimms semi circles & The 100 Star Study Box to her play. She re-explores shape & space. She explains “I made a circle with 2 semi circles but I like semi circles on their own too!” “The rocket’s gone but can you see the two tiny houses - in the middle they’re sharing a star!” 120
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 15/06/2025I love it when the Independent learners turn me into a waiter ...you know: ‘Are you enjoying your learning?’ ‘Yes!’ ‘Can I get you anything?’ 060
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 15/06/2025Isn’t it just - these sets are so visually and creatively rewarding to play with! 020
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 14/06/2025A nursery child explores the Montessori Shape Boxes. She intuitively engages with the properties of congruence, shape, colour, and magnitude, using them to create imaginative and varied designs: “I’ve made a rocket, and there are lots of stars around — every star is going to be different!” Joy! 3244
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 08/06/2025Play is a spark, if you let it out of the box it ignites ideas. New thoughts arrive like unexpected guests. Play wanders about our heads in ways we can’t predict and in places we forget to look. Imagination is refreshed. Best of all, it discovers things we could never dream alone. 0113
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 07/06/2025Thanks so much - your message really made my day! I’m so glad you’re enjoying the posts. Joy. Moments of learning are a great reminder of what really matters aren’t they! 110
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 07/06/2025EYFS child: “I’m studying number 10 on the Ten Study Rug” She wades playfully into cardinality, anatomy & multiple addition as her ideas unfold 10 plates are arranged into a picnic “In 10’s you get to 20 & 50 & 100!” “The Red Hands make 10 & mine make 20!” 030
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 07/06/2025Nursery child plays on the “Number Ten Study Rug” with Numicon “You can make 10 with 5 and 5 and that’s fair but you can’t make ten with 6 and 6 “ “You can’t make ten with 7 and 7.” He laughs. “You’d have to squash a 7 down into 2 and 1 which isn’t fair … Or three!” Joy. 2180
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 03/06/2025Nursery child simply joins a cork with an empty tape spool and has a magnifying glass at Picasso like speed. Joy! 0121
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 31/05/2025I see Play’s magnificent fusion of thoughts, actions and discovery as a form of thinking in itself. A primal language simultaneously abstract and concrete, relishing the unexpected, loved by mind, heart and body, and birthplace to innovation. 081
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 25/05/2025Picasso transformed a bicycle seat and handle bars into a Bulls Head. It’s been said a child could have done it. I wonder, isn’t the point the other way round? We adults DON’T do it, anymore. Do we wish our children trade in these transformative powers for ‘adulthood’? 1113
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 18/05/2025In the following days lots of Pink Boxes are made in the art room from junk modelling. “Look I’ve mixed the perfect Pink for the boxes” “I’m going to make a box for every word in the world so when I’m 4 I will learn lots and lots…and everyone can learn too” 080
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 18/05/2025Learning comes in so many forms doesn’t it …and when the learner expresses their learning in a form truly of their own …. we melt! Thanks for your response Hilda 🙏 010
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 18/05/2025He returns to the idea: “I’m making more ‘Study Boxes’ with words in, an ‘and’ box, with ‘ands’ in it, & a ‘School’ box” Each box he fills with the words. “Everyone can learn to write the words when they use the boxes… You use the boxes to learn words” 140
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 18/05/2025Nursery child: “I’m cutting out paper ‘spaces’ & putting them in a study box” Spaces? “Spaces are things in-between words, if you don’t have them the words get jumbled up” Oh? “Word spaces are real and not real, I’m making real ones for everyone to use between words” 3483
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 17/05/2025Since my pupils are the main stakeholders in their learning, why plan it without them? And, if I want them to drive their own learning, the sooner they’re in the driver’s seat, the more prepared they’ll be when the road is theirs to travel alone. 030
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 11/05/2025 🙌 Great quote 🙌 ❤️ keep playing ❤️ Thanks so much Jenny! 010
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 11/05/2025Even at your age Jenny…what ever that might be … and mine! 100
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 11/05/2025There are so many reasons why ‘finding time for focussed play’ is a problem worth solving… 1103
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 10/05/2025A Nursery child picks fresh leaves & daisies and lays them out with careful attention to position and 1-1 correspondence. She adjusts any spacial and numerical errors as she goes: “Squirrel is making a picnic, all his friends get one daisy each so they don’t squabble!” Joy! 1112
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 05/05/2025Once the box is made it is continuously available for play, and ‘replay’ I’ve learned, through observation, that children will return to ‘play with the learning’ in different ways - exploring lifecycles, creating designs, narratives and story telling. Joy! 011
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 05/05/2025I make the resources alongside the children as they play so they see the ideas develop. They join in with the design, making suggestions & additions as I work. Often they play with the developing prototype & the learning grows. Below two children make suggertions by drawing out lifecycles as I work. 111
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 05/05/2025~ Great question Becky ~ I design & make academic resources for my pupils to play with. They contain the learning I wish the children to learn. Here is a “Ladybird lifecycle” study box I’m making in response to gaps in knowledge and a misconception that Ladybirds get more spots as they grow up… 110
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 04/05/2025Yes - I imagine you miss this - you continue however to inspire others to follow your lead! 110
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 04/05/2025‘igniting the spark of joy, curiosity, excitement & kindness’ - you put it so well Kate. Now there’s a wonderful set of colours for the soul! 110
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 04/05/2025The idea, attributed to Marcus Aurelius, that ‘the soul is dyed by the colour of our thoughts’ seems, to me, very powerful. We become ‘what’ and ‘the way’ we think. As a teacher it really hits home when I see 35 young minds awaiting the influence of my thinking… 1105
Joolone @joolone.bsky.social · 03/05/2025Yes - me too - it serves to remind us what’s really important doesn’t it! 010