Anyone can be the mother

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“…Vivian Paley observes in her classic study of social inclusion, “You Can’t Say You Can’t Play”…
“Certain children will have the right to limit the social experiences of their classmates. Henceforth a ruling class will notify others of their acceptability, and the outsiders learn to anticipate the sting of rejection” (p.3)

What then if, as Paley documents in her work, we took a stand against such exclusion, and actively (intentionally!) sought to shape and guide the social relationships occurring before us, just as clearly and strongly as we seek to shape the other kinds of learning that happen in our settings everyday?

http://thespoke.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au/what-if/#comments

 

 

‘A Stunning New Musical for Australian Schools!

This great resource for children aged  5 – 12 years blends songs, drama, comedy

“Award winning author Phil Cummings and renowned composer/songwriter Glyn Lehmann launch their new musical Arlie Abbstock and the Incredible Cape.

Written for performers aged 5-12 years, this work is full of songs, drama, comedy, action and even a rap. This work celebrates difference and explores themes of resilience, perseverance, resourcefulness, artistic endeavour, empathy, acceptance and recycling!

The story revolves around Arlie Abbstock who lives in a small medieval village. The other children like to play with swords and battle axes but Arlie likes to stitch and weave and sew. When the king is captured by a dragon, and the bumbling knights fail to rescue him… Arlie has a plan of his own.”

Available Now at: www.songlibrary.net/Arlie-Abbstock

Arlie Abbstock and the Incredible Cape

…a magical, medieval musical script and lyrics by Phil Cummings

music by Glyn Lehmann
There’s a terrible dragon, a kidnapped king, a feisty queen, a plucky princess, bumbling knights…and then there’s Arlie Abbstock.
Arlie Abbstock and The Incredible Cape

Arlie isn’t like the other children; while they play with swords and battle axes, he likes to stitch and weave and sew. When the dragon kidnaps the king, the knights attempt his rescue but return blackened and defeated.

Who will save the king now?

With help from the princess, Arlie puts his plan into action by doing what he does best. Teased by the other children and scorned by the knights, Arlie surprises them all; proving that friendship and a little self-belief go a long way.

Drama, comedy, songs, rap and much more!
For performers aged 5-12 years.

Duration: approximately 40 minutes

MORE INFORMATION
Arlie Abbstock and the Incredible Cape celebrates difference and explores themes of resilience, perseverance, resourcefulness, artistic endeavour, empathy, acceptance… and recycling!

Key aspects:

  • 19 speaking parts and chorus opportunities in which many children can participate.
  • Easy, flexible costuming options with opportunities for recycling.
  • Staging suggestions for do-it-yourself stage design and props.
  • Parts included for beginner recorder and ukulele players.
  • As well as the obvious benefits of being involved in a school production there are a number of themes that may be expanded upon in the classroom. We have provided suggestions in the accompanying materials.

We hope you enjoy teaching, learning and exploring our new musical.

Phil and Glyn

Pirates – part 2

I do not ask the children to stop thinking about play. Our contract reads more like this: if you will keep trying to explain yourselves I will keep trying to help you think about the problems you need to solve.

Vivian Gussin Paley (1981) Wally’s Stories

 The pirates nudging each other

When Richard told me his next story Ned was sitting next to him.
‘I’m going to do a play,’ said Richard.
‘There’s only two people. Ned, do you want to be in my play?”
Ned didn’t answer.
‘Ned, do you want to be in my play?’
Silence
‘Ned, do you want to be in my play?’
Nothing.
‘Ned, do you want to be in my play?’
‘Maybe’. Continue reading

Pirates – Prologue

Put your play into formal narratives, and I will help you and your
classmates listen to one another. In this way, you will build a literature
of images and themes, of beginnings and endings, of references and allusions.
You must invent your own literature if you are to connect your ideas to the ideas of others.”

Paley,V. G. (1990). The Boy who Would Be a Helicopter

 Playing Pirates

Nearly every day Ned, Richard, George and Adam played pirates Sometimes they all played together, but often broke off into pairs. One day Ned and Richard made the climbing frame into their ship.

George and Adam made their ship from loose parts –tyres, ladders, steering wheel, blocks, carpet, reels, pipes, wheelbarrow… and more.

ready-to-go

The ground around was the sea, filled with sharks and crocodiles.

When Ned and Richard played together, it was Ned who always wanted to be the captain. But, that day, when Richard said, quite politely, ‘Walk the plank Ned’, things began to change. Ned stamped his foot, got red in the face, and stormed off to the cubby house.
I’m the captain, Richard!’ he shouted.
He couldn’t accept Richard’s version of the story, the one where Richard would be the Captain, and he would end up in the water.

I tried to help.
‘There could be two captains’.
‘No! I’m not playing,’ said Ned.
Ned wouldn’t compromise. He stayed by the cubby, watching and scowling. Richard was faced with a choice – let Ned be the captain (again) or, go and play with George and Adam on their pirate ship. He turned his back on Ned and went to join the others on their pirate ship, where when they turned the steering wheel, the electricity went on and off. They needed electricity to search for the treasure.  Adam turned the electricity on. After a few seconds Richard turned it off.

‘Don’t turn the electricity off!’ said George.
‘Yes’, said Adam. ‘We’ve reached the treasure.’
The three of them jumped off the ship and went to search for treasure. Richard looked over at Ned who was still watching from the cubby house. Could persuade Ned to come back?

‘You’re turn, Ned!’
‘No!  I’m the Captain’.
‘We’re playing workers now’, said Richard
‘No!’ said Ned, ‘We’re playing pirates.’

A few moments later, Ned past the boys looking for treasure.

‘Come on, Richard,’ he said. ‘Let’s go and be workers.’
Richard glanced up at him.
‘Richard, let’s do work.’
‘What sort of work?’
‘We’re working, trying if there’s no gaps in the ship.’

Richard stood still, then turned away from Ned and went on looking for treasure.

Ned and Richard didn’t work it out that day. In the free flow of the pirate dramas, these disagreements continued. Real-life dilemmas seeped into their imaginary storyplay as they tried to work out the twists and turns of social relationships.

Pirates – Part 1

Nudging Ned

a-sams-drawing

For many weeks Ned and Richard were playing pirates together. The day Richard said, quite politely, ‘Walk the plank, Ned’, things changed. Ned stamped his foot, got red in the face, and stormed off to the cubby house, shouting. ‘I’m the captain, Richard!’.

Ned refused to be in Richard’s story – the one where Richard was the captain. I had been watching this drama unfolding, aware that Ned always assumed the role of captain, and that Richard was getting a bit sick of being the pirate who always ended up in the shark-infested water.

I couldn’t help them work it out that day. I tried to help them find other ways to tell their stories.
‘You could paint or draw a picture about your pirate story.’
‘I can’t paint a pirate.’
‘You could each tell me the story that you’re thinking about, and I could write it down, and we could act it out at mat time.’

Richard was the first one to tell me a story.

‘There’s only Ned and Richard. There’s only two people. It’s about Ned and Richard. Ned and Richard fight with the swords and I’m the goodie and Ned is the baddie. There was a sea and I pushed him into the sea and I made him walk the plank.’

At mat time, Richard asked Ned to be the pirate who walked the plank. Ned shook his head, ‘No’, so Richard chose someone else. Ned wasn’t ready to take on that role – not in dramatic storyplay, and not as a character in Richard’s story. He as watched another child acted his part – a baddie being pushed into the sea. Continue reading

Children making stories

My educational philosophy and way of teaching was built around shared storymaking in all of its forms – storyplay, art (drawing, painting collage, making), story writing/dictating, storyacting, music, song, movement dance and drama.  Our storymaking became a ‘thinking-on-your-feet nudging-and-narrating’ process for us all – fluid and challenging – allowing ideas to be explored over a day, weeks, months and even over a year. I learned to have resources and  knowledge, or ways of finding out, at my fingertips. I learned to listen and to interpret underlying meaning.

a-on-the-journey-copyNudging and Narrating