Young Children's Symbolic Representation

[Selina]

Hello Again All...

I was wondering has anyone on the FD done the unit 'Young Children's Symbolic Representation'

If so does anyone have any reccomended reading links, books etc i cant seem to find alot. I know about Piaget and Vygotsky's work and id like to find some info on Athey and Matthews...

Anything related to this topic or unit would be very helpful

And does anyone know anything about supporting childrens sense of time and place???????

[friend]

Hi,
Chris Athey's book extending thought in young children is excellent, so is Tina Bruce - early childhood education. these books help you to understand more about children's symbolic representation.
time and place are abstract ideas to children and they are difficult to teach, however after I went on an ELKLAN course I found some practical ideas.
one idea for TODAY and YESTERDAY was to have two bags named today and yesterday. the children picked some of the things that they had done and put them in the today bag.
the following day during a group time we took the things out of the today bag and I explained that they needed to go in the yesterday bag because they had played with them yesterday all the while emphasising the word YESTERDAY.
Also I was taught you have to teach one concept at a time so didnt pay to much attention to TODAY.

There probably simpler ways but they have to be visual.