Children as Beings and Children as Becomings with Sam Williams

In this episode, I'm speaking with Sam Williams, headteacher of Redcliffe Nursery School, a state-maintained nursery school in the centre of Bristol.

I particularly enjoyed the thoughtful exploration of his value of democracy and how this begins for nursery aged children. Really thinking about how a childs’s own agency, as well as being valued for what they think and say and do, links to this value of democracy.

Alongside this, the skills and care that is encouraged and needed in understanding and supporting what is meaningful for young people. We also discussed that when children really care about the natural world or our climate, they have a lot of empathy for the living world, but this can result in children feeling really helpless which is contributing to the rise in eco-anxiety.

However, if we develop agency in young people, then this has a positive affect on their wellbeing as they experience their ability to be heard, and then participate in the change they want to see. I do think as adults we have a powerful role to support young people’s voices and to advocate with them about what they care about. But For now, lets hear from Sam and his experience of working as a head teacher in Bristol.

In this episode, we dive into:

• Revisiting the purpose of education and what it means for Redcliffe Nursery school.
• Embracing play as a core ethos.
• Exploring the idea of children as beings and children as becomings.
• Highlighting the importance of getting lost in the moment.
• Shifting our thinking to an ecological perspective, releasing pre-determined outcomes.
• Looking at creating space for the environment and materials to have their own agency.
• Reflecting on how ecological identity develops through agency, listening, and voice.
• Examining how eco-anxiety can be eased through eco-empathy and activism.
• Highlighting the value of state-maintained nursery schools and the critical importance of equity.

Show Notes:

https://theoutdoorteacher.com/podcasts/episode-45-children-as-beings-and-children-as-becomings/

Music by Geoff Robb: www.geoffrobb.com

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