Nature endows curriculum development with profound meaning and promotes the healthy development of preschool education.

"Taoism is natural", especially in early childhood education. As a naive child, the best education method is to respect nature and let nature take its course. Clever and effective use of natural resources to develop preschool education curriculum plays a unique role in children’s feeling and integration with nature, developing personal perception and mental ability, and cultivating the natural concept of harmonious coexistence between man and nature and harmony between man and nature.

Gongyi city, located at the foot of Mangshan Mountain and the bank of Heluo River, has developed a series of characteristic preschool education courses such as clay sculpture, sand sculpture, sand painting, weaving, music, perception, games, etc. by using the common natural resources that can be found everywhere and easily available locally, so as to promote the natural and healthy development of preschool education.

Be creative and natural, and use natural gifts skillfully.

Gongyi is located in the Central Plains, where the Yellow River and Luohe River meet to form Luoling, which nurtured the ancient civilization of the Chinese nation. It is not only the birthplace of Hutuluo, the hometown of poet Du Fu, but also the birthplace of Tang Sancai and the Northern Wei grottoes "The Ritual of the Empress". Teachers of early childhood education in Gongyi started from excavating local unique culture, and combined ordinary and spiritual materials such as water, soil, sand and stone with classroom teaching, thus creating a new chapter in early childhood education in Gongyi.

Taking advantage of the delicate and sticky local soil, local kindergartens have developed and created clay sculpture courses for children. From selecting soil, rolling, filtering, injecting water, mixing mud and shaping, groups of ordinary loess and red soil have become various animals, figures, toys and even jars and teacups in the hands of children to learn tea ceremony and entertain guests. In addition, some traditional clay games also bring new experiences to children in the classroom. Children can never get tired of playing games such as mud, throwing tile houses, sticking, scraping walls with mud, and climbing in pits.

Among them, throwing tile houses is an ancient traditional game that remains in the hearts of Gongyi people. The game requires children to knead mud into a small bowl shape and then throw it hard into the ground. It’s better to see who is more powerful, and the area that falls to the ground will win greatly. The key is to let the tile house bloom. It seems simple, but it is extremely difficult to do it perfectly. The choice of soil, the amount of water added, the size of the mud block, the shape of the kneading, the weight of the force, the inertia of the force, etc., are all key factors to determine whether to win or lose. During the activity, the children are familiar with their own small tile houses and concentrate on making them, only to hear a bang, and one by one, the small tile houses are blooming on the ground. The children scattered around, looking for small sticks, small ropes, etc., and couldn’t wait to measure whose area was large and whose flowers were good … In close contact with the soil, the children eliminated the anxiety of entering the park, gained happiness and growth, and fully exercised their arm strength, estimation ability, cooperation ability and flexibility of their fingers, thus effectively inheriting the culture that the farming civilization in the Central Plains valued soil and attached importance to it and moved safely.

The Yellow River rushes down from the upper reaches to the intersection of Luohe River, which becomes open and calm. Fine yellow sand is deposited on both sides, forming a deep and vast sandy land, and beach games have become another natural place for preschool education. The kindergarten teacher in Gongyi took the children to the Yellow River and moved the kindergarten into nature. Children have changed from "plastic children" to "wild children" who are free-range, running around, tumbling and wrestling at will on the vast land; On the beach, the children are full of creativity … They build sand piles, construct sculptures and play at will. At this time, the sand is as rough as their father, giving the children a chance to experience; Children make it into a sand table, and the game projects the inner real world. At this time, the sand is as gentle as a mother, giving children spiritual security and conversion; Children make it into a sand sculpture. At this time, the sand is as smart as a teacher, teaching children to create and cultivating their innovative ability of thinking. Children use it to make sand paintings, or draw directly. At this time, sand is more intimate like friends, communicating with children cordially and expressing boldly. A world in a grain of sand, children are playing the eternal charm in an instant.

All kinds of nature, discover the beauty of nature

In Xiaolihe Kindergarten, Mihe Town, gongyi city, a large number of common or even abandoned straws in rural areas are used in doorroom signs such as home contact column and class house number. The same idea has been applied in different ways in the Eastern Experimental Kindergarten and Xiangyu Kindergarten. All the theme recycling in the Eastern Experimental Kindergarten is made of plant straws, while Xiangyu Kindergarten uses seeds for large corridor recycling.

These common plant materials, through the ingenuity of teachers and children, have become works of art and living space with strong local flavor and modern customs. Decorative wall paintings made of tung tree shells, bark, stones, corn stalks, wood chips and reeds, 24 solar terms pictures made of plant materials, grenades made of corn and gourd, mice made of sweet potatoes, and various stickers made of shells, seeds, leaves, shells and walnuts can be seen everywhere and are very beautiful. In particular, the knitting courses offered with various natural materials perfectly combine traditional handicraft art with modern handicraft education. Corridor railings have become children’s weaving columns, and there are children’s homemade curtain weaving artifacts, weaving walls that can be woven at any time, and weaving angles of each classroom …

In the kindergarten, knitting activities that integrate handwork, color and composition can be carried out anytime and anywhere. The materials used for weaving are all taken from nature without exception: wicker, reed, straw, rattan, and the skins of various plants have all become the raw materials for children to be confident and skillful. In the living area, cushions, water coasters and various storage baskets woven with corn husks; In the puzzle area, various wisdom chessboards woven with corn husks and sorghum stalks. All kinds of materials are stretched and entangled between children’s fingers, and their hands, brains and eyes are fully exercised and coordinated. The children collected wild weeds and wild flowers from the mountains, created flowers and started a small florist.

Bookmarks made of wild flowers in nature have become the most eye-catching gifts for Teachers’ Day. Tie-dyed with pitaya, impatiens and pomegranate peel, and tied with discarded corncobs and sorghum stalks, all kinds of figures and animals are vivid and lively. There are also children and teachers who use thatched sheds built with millet stalks to shelter from the wind and rain and enjoy the fun of returning to the countryside and nature.

Music is natural, listen to the sound of nature.

In the field of music, teachers invited musicians from nature. Nature is a tune, and every material has a note. Willow branches, willow leaves, acorn shells, snail shells, bamboo joints, bamboo poles, wooden sticks and so on can make all kinds of wonderful notes simply. Although these materials are not exquisite enough and the music is not crisp enough, the children’s cheerful laughter is enough to make nature proud of its musicians.

Nature is also the best place to cultivate children’s sensory ability. Covering the children with leaves, they can lie still for 20 minutes. Let the children listen to the sound of falling leaves quietly, and they can actually perceive the difference between broad leaves and needles. Teachers will also take children to listen to Songtao, listen to frogs by the pond and listen to cicadas in the Woods. Children’s study is accompanied by ants, earthworms and snails. Nature is really the best place to experience and feel. This kind of play has feelings and temperature, which is the joy that plastic toys can’t give children.

Bacon, a western philosopher, said, "Only by understanding nature", and the concept of "harmony between man and nature" in Chinese culture shows us the essence and essence of education. Only by letting children fully integrate into nature, enjoy nature and return to nature can we better cultivate the ecological concept of harmonious coexistence between man and nature. Based on the exploration of local culture, we not only let the children gain healthy bodies, free souls and unruly wildness in the close relationship with nature, but also gain many qualities such as enthusiasm, self-confidence, concentration, cooperation and frugality, and gain a genetic link that is in perfect harmony with their local local local culture. Moreover, we gain a new pre-school education characteristic course that inherits local culture and attaches importance to ecological civilization.