Upon returning from winter break, we discovered the bed in the East Wing House Area had a broken a leg. Unfortunately, it wasn’t possible to repair the bed and after considering the demands of the children’s play, a cot was purchased. A group of six children volunteered to assemble the cot for the beloved play space. The cot arrived to New School-West in a small box in many pieces with assembly instructions that showed each step in illustrations.
Grey (reading the illustration in the first step): Look! It’s the letter ‘C’ and ‘D’! We need to connect them together.
Coco: This one has a ‘C’!
Lily: This one has a ‘D’.
Jessica: Do those pieces fit together?
Arrow: It’s not going. You need to turn it the other way.
Grey: Push down the gold button. I can do it.
Coco: It clicked! We did it!
With clearly numbered steps and letter labeled parts, the children eagerly and confidently began tackling the assembly.
Mason (referencing the mesh fabric): We need to unfold the blue piece.
Jacob: I’ve got the piece with ‘B’. We need to slide it through the fabric. It’s tricky. Lily, I need your support.
The last piece was challenging to line up correctly and it required a team effort to pull and hold it in place while the hex key tightened the final bolt. What a way to end our last day working with the mantra of collaboration!
Completing the construction of the cot left the children with a real sense of accomplishment. The visual instructions were ideal for them to work through simply and accurately. The task of assembling the cot required: reading visual and letter cues, communication, collaboration, and significant motor control, as well as a base knowledge of how to use tools. Many of the steps weren’t possible to complete independently yet all of the steps (with the exception of that really tricky final bar!) were able to be completed without adult help. It was really special to observe them recognizing and embracing their competencies at a task they found meaningful in support of their community and environment. We often speak about our high image of the child but what a treat to see them recognize this in one another and themselves. – Jessica