Peaceful Curriculum.

In an earlier post I mentioned that to keep things simple we could define Pikler as Peaceful Curriculum, Respectful Curriculum and Natural Curriculum. This post will examine Peaceful Curriculum.

Psalm 34:14 says “Do good; seek peace and pursue it”. Another verse we could apply is from James 3:17-18: Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.”

Piker believed that adults need to create a safe, quiet and peaceful environment where infants and toddlers can move and play in their own way. To provide such an environment, teachers are not to appear rushed, must keep their voices at a low level, and plan ahead to ensure that things don’t turn to custard all while putting the needs of the child first! It takes a lot of team work, a lot of planning, and a lot of communication.

Teachers need to provide time for undisturbed play – play that is not interrupted by the routines of the day. Children need time to explore at their own pace – to examine and taste an object; to play without teachers’ input – which, however well intentioned, can interrupt the learning process.

Teachers need to slow down and observe more. Take. Your. Time.

The role of the natural environment should not be overlooked. There is something about creation that calms the soul – for adults as well as children. This can be a tricky one as health and safety and also convenience have meant that our outdoor environments are becoming more sterile and less natural but children need sand and water and mud and dirt and bugs and insects.

A Peaceful Curriculum does not mean that children cannot make a noise. Rather, teachers' movements are unhurried, their voices soft, and their overall manner and way of responding one of calm and peace. Nor are teachers the "peacemakers" in the sense that they solve children's conflicts. Children are capable agents of their own conflict resolution if given time and support.

The keys for providing a Peaceful Curriculum? Relationship (and more specifically dedicated or primary caregiving), a daily rhythm that focuses on children’s needs (i.e. throw out the rosters and clock), a home-like environment, respect, and a team approach.

Why Pikler?

As mentioned in my last post, it is essential that we get it right as early childhood teachers of infants and toddlers (and beyond). For us, one of the ways of getting it right has been to provide a peaceful and respectful curriculum that draws on the work of Emmi Piker, a Jewish Hungarian paediatrician who, after World War 2, set up orphanages at the request of the Hungarian government for children orphaned as a result of war, maternal death in childbirth or from tuberculosis. The approach she had used in raising her first child was the inspiration behind the approach she brought to the orphanages. She questioned the “modern” way of teaching infants rather than allowing their development to unfold naturally.

Why do we believe that a Pikler inspired approach providers a blueprint for sustainable practice with infants and toddlers and beyond?

In the words of Toni Christie, from Childspace, Pikler “advocated for infants to be given our highest respect, focusing on the establishment of authentic trusting relationships between adult and infant. Her peaceful approach urges early childhood practitioners to consider infants and toddlers as competent, confident and unique individuals who are focused, self-initiating, involved, resourceful, secure, cooperative and curious” (Christie, 2011, pp. 7-8).

For New Zealand early childhood educators familiar with Te Whāriki this will sound familiar. This is because our early childhood curriculum states that the aspiration is for all children "to grow up as competent and confident learners and communicators, healthy in mind, body, and spirit, secure in their sense of belonging and in the knowledge that they make a valued contribution to society."

Furthermore, the pivotal concepts of Pikler such as relationships, respect and peace sit nicely within a Christian context. Our God is a relational God: consider Abraham, Jacob, Moses, the prophets, Jesus' relationship with His chosen twelve, to mention a few. As Christians we can have a personal and living relationship with Jesus Christ. Relationship is not foreign to us. We all need it.

This is what we value about the Pikler approach: relationship is at the heart of everything we do. It is everything to the child. And as we'll discover later, the relationships we form are not just for the child but the whole family/whānau.

References: Christie, T. (2011). Respect: A practitioner's guide to calm and nurturing infant care and education. Wellington: Childspace Early Childhood Institute, pp. 7-8.

Ministry of Education. (1996) Te Whāriki: He whāriki mātauranga mō ngā mokopuna o Aotearoa: Early childhood curriculum. Wellington: Learning Media,p.9.

In Search of a Definition

The theme of this year’s CECEAA Conference was “Growing Sustainability: Whakapakari Matatū”. The subtitle was “Ka whangaia, ka tupu, ka puawai: That which is nurtured, blossoms and grows.”

In the light of this we defined “Sustainable Practice for Infants and Toddlers” in this way: “Sustainable” can be defined as “able to be sustained, able to last or continue for a long time", while “sustain” means “to supply with sustenance, to nourish, to give support or relief”. Therefore, “Sustainable Practice for Infants and Toddlers” is practice that nourishes the body and soul, gives support and lasts for a long time, i.e. it has long lasting benefits.

At a workshop I attended last year we were asked to consider a scenario similar to this: if a child enters an early childhood setting at 4 months old and is in care from 8.00 am - 5.30 pm five days a weeks for 48 weeks of the year, by the time they start school at five, they will have spent 10,640 hours in an early childhood setting. That same child, starting school at age five and spending from 9.00 am - 3.30 pm (the typical length of a school day) in the classroom, five days a week for 40 weeks of the year (since there are 12 weeks of holidays in the school calendar), will have passed their thirteenth birthday by the time they have spent as much time in the classroom as they did in an early childhood centre.

Furthermore, brain research shows that in the first three years, relationships are critical. The quality or lack of will determine how the brain develops in the early years. For more information on this visit Brainwave Trust, or better still, attend one of their seminars. What we now know about the brain and how it develops has huge implications for infants and toddlers in care.

We cannot hide our heads in the sand and pretend that what we’re doing is “good enough”. There is no room for mediocrity, or second best. It is critical – absolutely critical - that we get it right. There is too much at stake and we must ensure that our practices meet the needs – physical, emotional, spiritual, and cognitive – of the precious ones entrusted to our care.

In Three Words

If I had to define a Pikler-inspired approach in three words it would be:

relationship, relationship, relationship.

I believe that Pikler is not a methodology but a way of "being" with infants and toddlers. A search online might reveal five, seven or eight principles of Pikler and they would all be right. We have used this list with students and parents and find it both comprehensive and invaluable. Lisa McKimm is an inspirational facilitator who definitely knows her Pikler.

However, to keep it simple, I have decided to keep it to three key elements:

1. Peaceful Curriculum
a. Children's needs first and foremost;
b. Providing time for uninterrupted play;
c. Slowing down;
d. Engaging with the natural environment;
e. Unhurried, planned.

2. Respectful Curriculum
a. Relationship, relationship, relationship;
b. Caregiving moments build trust and relationship;
c. "With" and not "to";
d. Tuning into children's cues;
e. Gift of full attention.

3. Natural Curriculum
a. Natural unfolding;
b. "Free Movement";
c. Observe more;
d. Children as competent agents of their own conflict resolution;
e. Environment as Third Teacher.

How can teachers provide a peaceful curriculum where respectful relationships are central and children are encouraged to develop according to their own timetable?

• Dedicated caregiving / Primary caregiving / Key teachers;
• No rosters, timetables, or clocks;
• Plan ahead;
• Homely environment;
• Natural environment.

I hope to explain these key elements further in upcoming posts as well as share honestly about some of our journey, both in the past and ongoing.

About This Blog

In August 2016 a colleague and I presented a workshop on Sustainable Practice for Infants and Toddlers at the Christian Early Childhood Education Association of Aotearoa (CECEAA) Conference in Auckland, NZ. As we spoke about many of the concepts that had become everyday practice for us - so everyday that they were an intrinsic part of who we were as teachers - we became aware that many of these concepts were foreign to our listeners. We wanted to invite them to our centre so they could see how beautifully it worked when teachers tore up the rosters, threw away the clocks, and focused on relationship, relationship, relationship.

This then is the next best thing: a way of sharing information, documenting our journey, and hopefully inspiring other teachers to take a leap into the unknown. Our setting is a Christian early childhood centre with rooms for 0-2 years, 2-3 years, 3-4 years, and 4-5 years. Our work is concerned with the first two rooms: 0-2 years and 2-3 years.

Our approach is inspired by the work of Emmi Pikler, an Hungarian paediatrician and whose respectful way of working with children has been shared with New Zealand early childhood teachers by Toni Christie and the team from Childspace, Natasha Kibble, Kimberley Crisp, and Pennie Brownlee. We must also acknowledge the work of Massey Childcare Centre at the Massey University Campus and their work on Attachment-Based Learning. Had we not visited their centre at the very beginning of our search, and rather nervously implemented some of their ideas, we may never have experienced this amazing journey.

This blog will also be a record of my teacher inquiry: How does a Pikler-inspired approach sit within a Christian context?