Display Policy

[mand]

I have been asked to be art coordinator next year and do a policy for displays. I have not written a policy before and would appreciate any advise. I have also been asked to do an inset on displays. I want it to be a hands on approach, rather than me talking for an hour. Has anyone got any good ideas . I was thinking about giving groups a certain task to do such as making a stimulating book corner or writing area. What do you think?

[Guest]

A policy on display.........!!! `I know I have said it before but really are we all going mad.

Now an inset on display is another thing altogether it should be stimulating, practical, sharing, fun, challenging, interactive, enthusing, colourful, positive - all the things we are when we are doing the job we enjoy.

[Beau]

Hi,

 

You might find this topic useful.

[Guest]

Try www.schoolpolicy.co.uk they have a whole load of different policies

 

Sarah

[Guest]

Last time we discussed displays, i took the following notes - I hope they are useful! Sarahx

 

Creating a display

 

Displaying children’s work is an essential part of building children’s self-esteem. All children’s work should be celebrated and respected so sensitive display techniques are essential.

 

Issues of gender, culture and disability need to be thought through when it comes to setting up displays and positive images and multicultural artifacts need to be included

 

We should not assume that children are predominately visual learners. “We must consider the place of touch, smell, taste and hearing in the setting and offer stimulation to all the senses. “Baskets and displays of natural materials such as cones, leaves, shells, and flowers can be touched, handled and smelt. Displays can include three dimensional objects, textures, scents, sounds and flavours.” Featherstone and Bayley 2002

 

On the display table natural objects, pinecones, conkers and leaves are displayed safely with a natural colour theme. It is located at a child friendly level to encourage children including those with any sensory impairment to feel, touch and smell the objects. The children are positively encouraged to make suggestions and bring objects into the classroom to add to displays. This encourages discussion in the home. “Nature tables are a valuable resource that you must consider and plan very carefully. Such displays can be a positive way of involving both parents and children” Robinson, Beith and Pullan, Early Years Care and Education

 

“Where children are valued carefully presented and displayed work on boards, display tables and centres of interest provides a record of past and present projects. We need to make time for children to be involved in the display of their own work. This often takes longer that putting it up ourselves. “The practitioner should consider the achievements of the individual, and not judge all work against an inflexible standard in order to display the ‘best items.” Drake 2005

 

“Teachers’ transcripts of children’s words carefully caption the work of each child.” Featherstone and Bayley 2002

 

“Act as a scribe to children’s thoughts and comments” Featherstone and Bayley 2002

 

Whatever the type of display, it should be easily accessible to the child visually. Drake 2005

 

“Reproductions of artists’ work and original works of art from the present and other time, and from different cultures, can provide a stimulating starting point for learning across all areas.” Drake 2005

 

Do we display children’s work in ways that really respect their representations, or do we try to ‘pretty’ them up to make what we think would be a better display?

 

•I think the best we can do for displays is show the children’s work in a context that will help them to see the over all picture of what was intended. I like to add a text telling how the work was produced. I often let the children do whatever they want with the paint and rollers, brushes, stickle bricks etc and then write a small piece 'Today we used the paint, we used rollers to make long lines, the stickle bricks made small spots etc...' Or base it around the development that can take place, 'today we practiced gripping small things, we made these collages...'.

 

•Our displays are children’s own work in whatever form it comes, not usually mounted, but can be, and as said some annotation on how it was produced, or what the children said about it when making it, children ask to put them on the wall to show everyone or we suggest they may like to. we encourage children to have 'ownership' of the displays rather than us.

 

Large group pictures are usually with a bit more adult input but generally you can see the children’s work in it, and often have word lists or comments from children displayed with it, as say in day and night picture what they see in day and night what is same or different etc... Rainy picture, how they feel, do they like it, words to do with rain from them. None look particularly, tidy, or neat and all who see them say the children have obviously done that and like it because it is bright child friendly and always changing.

 

•'Instant' displays of children's work as they produce it with a note on the context and learning outcomes

[Guest]

Health and Safety.

As many of us work in older buildings we should make sure we only attach pictures to surfaces which are safe and free from Asbestos. All staples should be removed when the pictures are taken down. We should not cover all the windows as this cuts out light.

 

We were taught display at college - one activity we did - we were given a large sheet of paper, this represented our display area and we selected some pictures cut from magazines or post cards and had to display them on the paper. We used blue tack to fix them in place so we could move them about. We also made labels. We were taught that the distance in from the edge of the board should be uniform and we added borders and frames.

This might be a good activity for inset, you could give everone a sheet of identical pictures, then look at how everyone approaches their display and look at the different effects people use and learn from each other.

[mand]

Thanks Mimi, that sounds like a great idea. I have been worrying about it but you have now given me something to think about.

[mand]

Hi Mimi,

 

You replied to one of my posts a while ago about a display inset you went on. You gave me a great idea about an activity I could do with the teachers, which was to give them a set of identicle pictures to make a display with. I was just wondering what sort of pictures you gave them and did you photocopy them. I want to do this next week with a group of teachers. Thanks for your help.