Bright or Gifted: Policy Development
APPENDIX 5: Resources
Books
Reference Books encyclopaedias, dictionary, thesaurus, atlas, local street directory.
Non Fiction reference material on topics such as dinosaurs, volcanoes, astronomy, ecology, the marine environment, animals, plants, anatomy.
Fiction high quality childrens' picture books (authors such as Alison Lester, Graeme Base, Mem Fox, Libby Hathorn, Christobel Martingly, Nadia Wheatley) childrens' classics, chapter books (such as Charlotte's Web) and fantasy.
Poetry Books such as Robert Louis Stephenson's A Child's Garden of Verses, When A Goose Meets A Moose by Claire Scott Mitchell, and A.B. Patterson's Waltzing Matilda, The Man From Snowy River and Mulga Bill's Bicycle.
Magazines and periodicals such as Australian Geographic, Australia's Natural History and National Geographic.
Play and Learning Resources
Dramatic Play Resources dress-ups, sheets and blankets for making cubbies, family corner props. Sand and water play allow children to explore the impact of water on sand through the use of buckets of water and if possible) the hose. The use of different resources at different times will generate quite diverse responses and renew interest. Resources such as household items, plumbing pipes, animal figures, wooden offcuts, stones and small pavers can generate new interest in sand play. Pumps and clear plastic tubing can stimulate children to use familiar water play resources in new ways.
Blocks and Block Accessories cars, figures, small boxes, wooden or plastic animals, small sticks, stones, corks, paddle pop sticks and other loose resources which can he used in a range of ways. Paper, cardboard, textas and paddle pop sticks, when provided in conjunction with block play, can stimulate interest in making street signs and labels. This may also provoke interest in recording block building designs or road patterns and block city lay-ours. This can lead to an interest in street directories and maps.
Puzzles and Games wooden puzzles of varying complexity and games such as memory, dominoes, solitaire, and mastermind. Games which use complex visual discrimination skills such as Differix, are also useful. Also encourage children to devise their own games or new rules or playing strategies for existing games.
Computers and Appropriate Software software which offers, a range of challenging problem solving activities, is open-ended, encourages independence, and allows for co-operation and small group work. Also simple data bases, spread sheets or graphing programs. See Fatouros, C., Downes., T. and Blackwell, 5. (1994). In Control. Young Children Learning With Computers.Wentworth Falls: Social Science Press.
Household Objects numerous household objects can be utilized as play resources: buttons can be counted, sorted, and used as play money; plastic containers can be used for seriation, dramatic play and to hold and organize collections; kitchen items can be used in water play and discarded ones relegated to the sand pit. The adult and gifted child can share the task of devising new and challenging play experiences with house-hold objects.
Art and Craft Resources paper, crayons, pencils, textas, sticky tape, junk materials (boxes, cylinders, packaging), paint, paste, timber offcuts, small hammer, nails, craft glue, fabric scraps, scissors, wool, cotton wool, buttons, pipe cleaners, paddle-pop sticks ... It is important to note that these resources should be carefully organized and easily accessible to the child where practicable. This facilitates autonomous learning, independence and problem solving. The choice and organization of the materials should be based on knowledge of the child's stage of development and consideration must be given to the safety of the child. Close observation of the individual child will indicate the appropriateness of particular resources.
Numeracy Resources concrete materials such as blocks, beads, counters, buttons, shells, and stones can be used for sorting, ordering, seriating, counting, and classifying. Simple tools for measuring length, (such as tapes and rules), and mass, (such as simple scales) can also be used in the context of free play and investigation.
Literacy Resources pencils, paper, notepads, envelopes, stamp pads and stamps can facilitate the development of and interest in writing in the context of free play.
Investigation Resources magnifying glasses, specimen boxes, collecting and sorting trays can be useful for investigation of the natural environment. Kaleidescopes, binoculars, and magnifying glasses can stimulate interest in visual perception. Magnets and the relevant accessories create interesting and stimulating outcomes which stimulate further investigation. Australian Geographic shops are a useful source of such resources.
Musical Resources junk materials and household objects for spontaneous sound exploration and music making. Untuned percussion instruments such as tapping sticks, tambourine, castanets and tambour. Tuned percussion such as chime bars, xylophones and glockenspiels. Keyboard for experimentation and music making.
Places to Visit
Cultural centres such as galleries, theatres, and concert halls. (The Bennelong program, Sydney Opera House and the Out of the Box Festival in Brisbane specifically cater for young children).
National Parks including the education centres generally located within.
Museums such as The Australian Museum, The Power House Museum and Kidseum in Sydney which have exhibits designed for young children which allow active investigation.
Further resources
http://www.tki.org.nz/e/gifted/ – (The gifted and talented website initiative)
Gifted Education Research, Resource and Information centre
The University of New South Wales, Sydney NSW 2000
Ph: 02 93854295
New Zealand Association for Gifted Children
P.O Box 40 Waitomo Caves
New Zealand