Creative
Web Method
 The
Creative Web Method is a holistic and multifaceted approach
to developing programs for infants. The Empowering of
Infants demonstrates the implementation of this method
in a childcare setting. Narrated by innovator Yolanda de Rue
the film leads you on a visual journey that informs the viewer
of the various aspects that are the strands of The Creative
Web. Filmed on location at the Circular Head Childcare Centre
it creates a sensitive and insightful picture of what it means
to develop and grow emotionally and creatively in a caring
setting.
Read
on for more information about the evolution of The Creative
Web Method.
In
1994 as part of my role as a TAFE childcare teacher, I was
approached to establish a parent involved playgroup for infants
aged from birth to eighteen months. The purpose of the playgroup
was to provide our students with practical experience in working
with babies. I encountered comments such as,” What on
earth does a baby do at playgroup?" and "Babies
just lie around and do nothing really" None the less,
the enrolments grew.
To
my knowledge it was the first playgroup in the state designed
specifically for such a young age group. From tenuous beginnings,
it grew to become a valuable learning experience for the students,
parents, babies and myself. 'We began to really discover the
depth of relationship between infants and their parents and
the potency of the instinctive nature innate within us all.
The Playgroup evolved it's own unique culture.'
My
approach to the 'Babyplay' group I had established became
strongly influenced by the Reggio Emilia approach. I was impressed
with the dynamic nature of the approach and the way in which
all the elements formed an organic whole. As an artist I was
inspired that here at last was an approach that aimed to foster
creativity and potential from life's earliest stages rather
than to stifle it. The approach resonated with my own background
and the ideas and philosophies adhered to by my own parents
as I was growing up. In other words it gave me a context in
which I felt extremely comfortable. Culturally my family had
come from a similar European area to that of Reggio Emilia.
My
students and I met to develop ideas for the new year and in
doing so devised a philosophy for our 'Babyplay' Group that
recognised the infant as a rich and powerful being - a co-constructor
of his/her experiences. It read as follows:
'We believe that the infant should be respected as co-constructor
of his/her life experiences and that a secure environment
is needed in which to establish trusting relationships through
loving interactions with carers. It is on the basis of these
relationships that learning can occur in a positive atmosphere.'
My aim was for the playgroup to be a collaborative learning
experience for students, babies, parents, teachers and other
interested people.
We considered the environment carefully and also discussed
the implications of Piagetian theory. Our question became,
'How can we create an environment that enhances the development
the non-verbal baby in the sensory-motor stage while recognising
his/her image as one of powerbroker and co-constructor?'
At the time major advances in neurobiology and developmental
psychology were reshaping our understanding of how the brain
grows and develops.The research emphasised the wholistic nature
of development and the impact of early attachments.
We directed our attention to the profound role that both the
physical and social environment has in shaping babies' minds.
The
Creative Web Method grew out of my attempts to address the
critical issues of attachment, context, empowerment, creativity
and brain development. I encouraged my students to begin developing
environments at Babyplay group that were enriching to all
five senses and where infants were recognised as the powerbrokers.
We trialled the idea by having what we named a 'sensory day'
on which we filled the environment with a vast range of materials
designed to stimulate and nourish the senses.
We
created an environment that we hoped would be irresistable
to the infant - one in which they would be free to explore
- that generated their innate wish to really touch and taste
and absorb each moment. Here the infants were the powerbrokers
- freed from parental 'control' but in a safe yet challenging
space. All manner of materials and items were collected for
the sensory day. Huge boxes were filled with shredded paper
for the infants to nestle into, to throw, to scrunch. There
was a box filled with coloured balloons to lick, touch, squeak
and blow around. Large mirrors were strategically placed to
be walked up to, crawled over, stood on, peered into.
The scent of essential oil burning permeated the air, while
strains of Enya music played in the background. The children
were fascinated by enormous soap bubbles. There were trays
of clear jelly to slop around in, a baby bath with large shells
of all colours and textures to be handled, a perspex container
of garden snails to pick up and let crawl up your arm!
A
shallow plastic wading pool was filled with scented water,
pink camelias floating on the surface. Windchimes hung from
the ceiling above mountains of fat cushions covered by fluffy
old bedspreads. Here the infants could venture across a landscape
of satisfying textures and big soft bumps. There was sorbet
to satisfy even the youngest palate. A large area was festooned
with white sheets rejected by a local laundry and nearby were
trays of paint and a floor space covered with lengths of white
paper for foot and body painting. Coloured cellophane on the
windows deflected the light creating hints of reds, blues
and yellows.
Parents were happy to undress their infants and allow them
to explore in just a nappy or less. It was as though the infants
wanted to congratulate us and say, "Yes - you have finally
worked out just what we like".
The success of the first sensory day led us to continue along
this unconventional track. The infants expressed far more
interest and enjoyment in the sensory materials than they
had in the traditional plastic and wooden manufactured educational
materials. They played more actively and developed larger
explorative fields, venturing further away from their primary
caregivers than in previous more structured sessions.
I
began to observe that there was order and purpose to their
explorations which included an almost cyclical pattern of
venturing away from home base ie their primary caregiver,
exploring, returning to home base and venturing away again.
Many would be satisfied with connecting with home base purely
by making eye contact. Individual infants chose to spend extended
periods of time engaging in the exploration of a specific
material. They maintained eye contact with areas of interest
with what appeared to be intense concentration and took far
more interest in each other than they had in the previous
weeks. They touched each other made eye contact with each
other and vocalised amongst themselves. There were far less
incidences of distressed and crying infants than we had ever
experienced in prior playgroups.
These
experiences made it clear to me that a new and more holistic
method of planning experiences for infants needed to be developed.
This method had to incorporate both the physical and the social
environment and present strategies for addressing the elements
of trust that underlie strong stable relationships. It also
had to address play as innate instinctive behaviour by presenting
strategies for encouraging explorative behaviour and negotiation
of risk. The way in which the environment was perceived suddenly
became intensely more important in my planning and observations.
I construed that perception needed to be addressed more holistically
by addressing the nurturing of all five senses and planning
for them.
Several years earlier as a part of my art studies I had developed
my own model of the creative process. The model is simple
and yet I believe encapsulates the essence of how creative
forces flow. Through my observations at the Babyplay group
I discerned that the environment we were implementing allowed
for the creative process to flow effectively. In developing
the Creative Web Method , the Creative Process became the
core of the method.
The Creative Web Method is designed to enhance development
in all domains through recognising infants as creative, playful
beings.
The Creative Web is structured to achieve this through the
establishment of a stable social environment and the preparation
of a physical environment that nourishes the senses and provides
challenges in order in order for infants to play and become
co-constructors of their own learning. The method provides
these strategies by addressing the following four strands:
-
Trust in the Infant ie: trust in the infant’s potential
to grow and develop.
- Trust
in the Carer ie: as stable home base
- Sensory
Environment ie: provision of experiences that nourish all
the senses
- Instinctive
Play ie: an environment that encourages explorative play
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