11th PROJECT 2018/19
A mouse named Fridolina came to Trnovo Kindergarten seeking help from the children, knowing they had previously assisted King Matthias, sailor Karlo , shepherd Cene, pixie Minu and others. Fridolina wished to participate in a special culinary festival. The children collaborated, pooling their knowledge and skills to explore, discover, invent and tackle various challenges alongside their educators and parents. Phase by phase, they uncovered the secrets of healthy eating while nurturing relationships with others and themselves (social curriculum).
In the initial phase (guiding us toward a professional and systematic approach to the educational process), the children and Fridolina explored various fruits and their uses in food preparation. The materials allowed the children to manipulate them in numerous ways, encountering new challenges and gaining experiences. Through playful exploration in open learning labs, the children learned about fruits, conducted experiments, tested ideas, made decisions and exchanged thoughts, and connected their discoveries to healthy eating habits, recognizing fruits as vital source of nutrition (then and now). They became aware of the presence of fruits in various dishes, understanding their role in nurturing strong and healthy bodies, sharp minds, and as culinary delights to share with friends.
Through play, they children charted their own unique paths toward finding solutions, encouraging each other to create a wide array of products showcased at the “Magic Market”. A new research question then led them into the second phase – exploring different types of bands.
Their versatile and creative use led them from rainbow ribbons to lifelines, timelines, digestive tracks, light strips, product lines, and more, where they could even write down recipes. The shared goal of finding interconnected places and items prompted the children to explore, exchange ideas and collect diverse and unique recipes, all while learning essential social skills. Topics addressed included identifying one’s own worth, understanding the importance of acknowledging our desires, needs, and expectations as well as those of others, accepting diverse opinions, and appropriately expressing and justifying disagreement without offence or humiliation. They also learned how to congratulate others and themselves on successes.
As our final product, we created a unique “Collection of Special and Unusual Recipes”. In the third and final phase, the children and educators explored the human body and discovered ways to foster a positive relationship with oneself and others. Through creative and innovative methods, tailored to the children’s understanding, we learned about the value of each individual and differences between us. We realized that although we are different, we share similarities and that by sharing our knowledge, we can achieve more together.
At the end of the last phase, we gathered all our important findings and presented our creations to the parents by organizing a spectacular culinary event, which we called “A Rollercoaster of Thousands of Tastes and Relationships”. We were thrilled to find all the answers and to create the magic of thousands of tastes and relationships, especially making Fridolina happy. With our help, she was able to participate in a special culinary competition. We waved goodbye to Fridolina and accompanied her to the castle carriage. She expressed her gratitude with a smile as she drove home with her grandma and grandpa.
