Making a Mark

on the World

One day on a visit to the big yard, Logan discovered paint in the mini-studio. We noticed how engaged he was expressing himself with the marks he was making.

As Educators we value the children being able to express themselves creatively. Our belief in The Hundred Languages of Children led us to consider the children’s mark making more closely.

We wondered how we could support the children to build on their drawing skills to enable them to express their ideas, meaning and thoughts behind their mark making.

We decided to offer the children white paper and black textas each time they came to child care. We initially thought that with practice their marks would become more recognisable allowing the children to express themselves more clearly.

What we noticed, was that the children named their actions as they made marks on the paper. This gave their marks a deeper meaning that we could now begin to see.

So we repeated their words and other children copied their ideas.

We began to see that the children looked to us after each mark for confirmation, seeking a connection. The connections between the children and educators strengthened. The marks now had more meaning and yet …… they stayed the same.

Our understanding of the marks the children were making … that they had been making the whole time …. was being expanded.

The need for more detailed drawings was not the key to children expressing their ideas clearly. The key was our interpretation of their marks.

Educators were now able to offer different perspectives for the children to explore.

Some children used their whole body to express themselves.

We marvelled as we watched how their mark making told their story. This discovery went beyond what we initially imagined possible.

The children developed trust in their own actions and the confidence to share these ideas and others within the room.

As we watched, the Educators learned to understand the intention and meaning that was behind the children’s marks. The children’s thinking became more visible to us.

The mark making project is a story of relationships; of the children’s connection to the textas and paper as they began to welcome the daily invitation to make their ideas visible;

it is the story of the interactions between the children as they shared their ideas and took on the ideas of others, building their internal goldmines:

and of the educators who learned to understand the intent behind the children’s marks and of the children who felt seen and heard.

These children always knew they had something to say and now they know someone is listening.