I remember as a five-year-old how we were made to draw continuous patterns in kindergarten. You know, those waves and knots that go on and on. I don't know about you but I actually enjoyed doing them and it was an opportunity to just be in the moment and empty my little mind, almost like a state of zen.
Growing up, I find those moments when sketching and painting and strangely, reading, which somehow does not link up but produces the same effect nonetheless. I guess, the epitome of it would be prayer; just standing there and reciting what you have recited for many years five times a day, your mind just focusing on its meanings and significance, your body moving only when it can and within what is prescribed. Unfortunately, that state of serenity is not always the case.
I envy my children when I see them having those moments, free from the cares and distractions of the world, so busy in their work and exploration. Most of the time these days, I'm trying to run through three to four things at a time as a work-at-home homeschooling mum.
In Montessori, we have the three hour work sessions where the child has been observed to build up his focus and come to a point where he is totally absorbed in work at his peak. The reality of life however means that there will be moments where we need to work around a schedule and sometimes it means taking the child away from his work.
Recently, I have had a renewed interest in the Waldorf method of Form Drawing. Partly because I think I've become truely uninspired in my children's educational process and partly because my seven-year-old daughter still has problems with where some of her numbers and letter are facing. She however has no problems reading books for children three-years older so, in that sense I'm not worried, yet.
Form drawing was introduced into Waldorf schools by Rudolf Steiner in 1919. It is taught in classes 1 to 5 and basically consists of freehand drawing of non-representational forms. You can see some examples at http://millennialchild.com/Slideshows/Resources/Grade01FormDrawing.html.
Gerbert, R., said the essence of form drawing was "movement expressed in line". Students are prescribed a movement to do on the classroom floor similar to the form they will draw and this results in the translation of movement into the most basic element of drawing, line and curves. They get more complicated as the child advances. I am still trying to find out whether they still do the physical movements then because I cannot imagine how.
Some homeschoolers practice translating parts of a story into forms. So, they will be telling a story and at some parts they will draw what is happening in the story into waves or knots for example. This however makes me question why they are said to be "non-representational" forms. I obviously still have a lot to learn. Nevertheless, I find it an interesting and useful teaching tool.
As symmetry is widely used in form drawing, it is also said to improve a child's sense of laterality. It is also helpful in aiding a child in reading and writing and forms a basis for the learning of geometry. Here I find an interesting connection to the importance Montessori put on movement in education, something that has been greatly studied and proved of late; but that deserves a separate post.
Apart from this, the child brings together, the hand, the heart and the mind, as the movements create feelings and imagery in the children's minds and they recreate them in their drawings. There are of course philsophical aspects to form drawing that Steiner brought in but I think whether you agree with him or not, this is a great channel to address certain issues that our children might face whether it be in handling laterality, getting in touch with their feelings or just trying to calm down and focusing.
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