Children’s Vision 2012, hosted by the Cerritos College Child Development Center was held on June 6 and 7 in the Student Center. It showcased a different method of teaching through projects made by the children.

The process used is called “Children’s Hundred Languages of Learning” which is part of the pedagogy philosophy which teaches young children through their background experiences and knowledge.

It consists of teachers listening to the interests of the children, then using the “Children’s Hundred Languages of Learning” process to find a way to teach them about that subject.

“Children will do well in school if you give them the opportunity to discove through different types of languages that children understand.

“Languages like clay, art, science, gardening, and understanding about the world around them,” Child Development Center Director, Debra Ward, said.

The teachers documented the children’s interests that were put into projects made over the year such as clay sculptures, planet models, paintings and a lemonade stand.

“The teachers and the children work collaboratively together as co-researchers to discover hypothesize and come up with various answers to their questions. And those answers to their questions end up looking like the projects throughout the year,” Ward said.

One of the things that continually held the children’s interests were lines, which started by the children going on a hunt for lines throughout the Cerritos College campus and throughout the community. They also studied lines on their faces.

Next they created projects titled “Torn Paper Lines” and “Sculpting with Lines.”

“That was something that stuck the whole year. It started with lines and it was becoming evident in their drawings with face painting and we saw through the process that they were starting to make connections to shapes and then the shapes became letters and then it became emergent writing,” Child Development Center teacher, Desiree Robles, said.

Another example of the children’s ability to co-research with teachers was shown when they learned

how to hula dance. The children wanted to dress more like hula dancers for a performance.

After researching the type of dress worn by hula dancers, the kids wanted shell necklaces but they needed to figure out how to put holes in the shells. They learned that they needed a drill in order to make their necklaces.

The children decided to raise money for the drill by building a lemonade stand, after looking up recipes, advertising and selling the lemonade the children raised $217.20.

A silent auction was also part of Children’s Vision 2012. Five baskets containing donated materials were auctioned off. “We wanted to share with other teachers in early childhood the types of materials we use with children and how easy and accessible they are,” Ward said.

The different baskets included a sewing basket, documentation basket, water basket, natural material basket, and a gardening basket.

The event ran from 5 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.