Scenario
Dominica, aged three years and ten months, is playing at a low-level sand tray in the garden. She is alone and focusing intently on her hands as she squeezes sand through them. The sand is fine and dry and there is nothing else in the tray. She raises her hands and lets the sand trickle through her fingers.
Next she lifts a handful of sand and throws it out of the tray. She takes another handful and throws it up as well as out of the tray. She rubs her hands in the sand that has fallen on the ground, inspects the palm of one hand and removes some grit from it using her thumb and forefinger. Her attention returns to the sand tray, where she begins making a line through the sand with her left-hand index finger, working right to left.
Bobby arrives at the sand, bringing with her a pot of water, which she tips into the tray, accidentally splashing Dominica, who squeals with delight.
Bobby then repeatedly returns to the water tray, refills the pot and pours the water over Dominica's hands. Each time, she pats the wet sand and digs into it with her fingers. 'Water gone away,' she says to Bobby, who asks her if she wants more.
The two girls run to the water tray and both bring buckets of water back to the sand and pour it in. 'Where's it going?' says Dominica, looking under the tray. 'It's all wet and squizzy, ooh. My mummy says we going seaside, I got swimsuit,' Dominica says, while digging and squeezing in the wet sand.
The two girls giggle and smile at each other. They run to the toilet area and fill their buckets from the sink, continuing to play together for some time.
Observation and assessment
Consider the following questions before reading the assessments of the children's learning:
* What have you observed about Dominica's physical interaction with the sand and water?
* What evidence is there of concentration, perseverance and manipulative skill?
* How does she respond to Bobby's intervention?
* What do you think Dominica knows about sand and water?
* What action would you plan to enable her to get the most from the experience?
Points for team discussion
* How do you enable children to select and use resources and implements, such as buckets and rakes?
* What provision do you make for children to enable them to focus exclusively on sand/water and for contemplation?
* How do you empower children to use, and transport, sand and water safely and responsibly?
Scenario evidence of learning
Dominica seems happy to play alone or with others. She shows concentration and is able to focus on an activity of her choice. She is able to manipulate small items, such as the piece of grit, and appears to favour her left hand, making marks from right to left.
She appears to be interested in the properties of fine and wet sand and is able to verbalise her observations and raise questions. She is imaginative in her use of words to describe how the sand feels. She hypothesises that the water is disappearing through the bottom of the tray as she cannot see it in the form that she expects. She checks her hypothesis, by looking under the tray, but abandons the question (for the time being anyway) when her theory proves to be incorrect. She shows delight in her physical interaction in sand and water and seeks to continue the sensations. Her social responses are positive, engaging the other child with conversation and body language and extending the interaction, ultimately to a collaborative activity.