When a Reception child asked to paint the shed in the outdoor area at Richmond Academy, part of the Harmony Trust in Oldham, Greater Manchester, staff embraced the opportunity with fabulous results.
The idea of creating a rainbow shed evolved from children using chalk to write on the walls inside the shed. ‘Some children started to clean the writing off, and then one child got a brush and another one got a brush and they kept going until lots of them were working together to clean the inside and outside of the shed,’ says early years lead Charlotte Smythe.
‘They started going back and forth to the tap with heavy buckets of water. They worked together to carry them, which was wonderful to observe and it was lovely hearing them discussing what they needed to do. When it was done, the children were very proud of what they had achieved.’
She describes this year’s intake as ‘a classroom full of rainbow-lovers. I don’t know whether it’s because of the pandemic and them having seen rainbow images around, but they just love rainbows. In autumn, we did a full project on rainbows and one little girl has kept with it.’
This child looked at the cleaned brown shed, surmised that it now looked rather dull and said, ‘I want a rainbow shed. Can we paint the shed?’ Staff at Richmond Academy aim to support the children’s interests and run with their ideas, which led to Ms Smythe agreeing to the proposal.
CHOOSING THE PAINT
The child excitedly wanted to gather paint from the art area, so Ms Smythe explained how they needed special outdoor paint for the shed and suggested that they write a list of what would be needed from the shops.
They wanted colours that were bright and happy like a rainbow, linking to conversations they had had around how different colours can make us feel.
‘The children started to list all the colours that they wanted, at which point I was thinking it’s going to be an expensive trip, so I had to explain that it would cost too much money,’ Ms Smythe says. ‘We discussed this and agreed to have two colours – a really bright pink and an aqua colour. They wanted to paint the front one colour and the sides the other.’ The activity inspired children to write with a purpose as they devised shopping lists so that Ms Smythe could buy the right items.
GROUP EFFORT
The following day, a group of four- and five-year-olds spent the full afternoon painting the shed. They continued to work collaboratively and problem-solve as they thought about the project, put on aprons and overalls to protect their clothes, placed mats on the floor and got wooden blocks from the construction area to stand on when they needed to reach high.
By the end of the day, the children were excited to tell their parents what they had done and were even more thrilled when they returned to school to find the shed had been given a second coat of paint and looked even brighter. Children thought it looked magical.
‘They are really proud of the painted shed and I feel it is something that the children will always remember – how they asked their teacher to paint the shed and she actually let them do it,’ says Ms Smythe. ‘It’s something children don’t often get the opportunity to do because it’s seen as an adult activity. Our site manager would have happily painted the shed, but just think of the experiences that the children would have missed out on.’
THEIR SANCTUARY
The shed has become a treasured place that the children feel ownership of because they created it. ‘They enthusiastically showed it off to the principal and it has become a special place for them to go. They have pinned up pictures and drawings inside the shed,’ says Ms Smythe.
‘It’s become a place for them to inspire reading and writing, which is so needed right now because the children have missed out on so much during lockdown. It’s their little special place where they can read a book or just sit and have conversations with each other.
‘It’s been positive for the children’s wellbeing and they have created their own sanctuary, a place to find quiet time in a busy outdoor area. The shed was used before, but it’s definitely used a lot more now.’
‘DREAM BIG’
Coincidentally, the school recently celebrated Digital Lift-Off Day, when Reception children were inspired to ‘dream big’ and were encouraged to embrace the idea that they can achieve big things if they work really hard. Ms Smythe believes that painting the shed tied in well with that concept.
‘It has encouraged the children to be really imaginative and enabled them to understand that if they want to create something and put their minds to it then they can. That’s what we’re trying to embrace and encourage in the early years – a “let’s do it” attitude. A child saying that she wants a rainbow shed and us then supporting the children to create it on such a big scale has encouraged them to continue to be creative and imaginative and follow their dreams,’ she says.
‘I feel that we should do more of this. The best learning outcomes come from children’s ideas that they have led on – their passions and interests rather than something that we have decided that they will do. I know that they will remember moments like this.’
PERSONAL TOUCH
A few weeks later, the girl who had the original rainbow shed idea spent a lot of time beside the shed. Ms Smythe went over to find that she had drawn lots of rainbow pictures and fastened them all over the shed.
‘Now it’s a rainbow shed!’ she said. She had put her initials on all the rainbow pictures and was very happy.
BOOK CORNER
The Colour of Happy by Laura Baker and Angie Rozelaar
A beautiful exploration of feelings shown through colour as one little boy navigates a range of emotions on his way to present a gift to his mum.
The Crayons’ Book of Feelings by Drew Daywalt and Oliver Jeffers
Everyone knows the crayons love to colour, but did you know that crayons have feelings too?
The World Made a Rainbow by Michelle Robinson and Emily Hamilton
Inspired by the rainbows that children created and displayed in their windows during lockdown, this book has a hopeful message of staying connected to the people we love.
Errol’s Garden by Gillian Hibbs
Errol loves gardening, but he doesn’t have a proper garden. A tale about how one small boy’s dream unites a diverse community.
A Fox Called Herbert by Margaret Sturton
Herbert may be a rabbit, but he knows he was born to be a fox. A celebration of being ourselves and following your dreams.
Sofia Valdez, Future Prez by Andrea Beaty and David Roberts
With the help of friends and neighbours, Sofia proves that everyone has the power to change their world.
You Choose/You Choose Your Dreams by Pippa Goodhart and Nick Sharratt
If you could be anything or go anywhere, what would you choose? Open-ended books with wonderful illustrations enabling children to lead their own conversations and explorations.