Make and Play

A Game of Their's Own / Njihova igra

2012-02-27T16:28:00.000+01:00

A few days ago V and Baby Z made this big drawing on the floor. It was actually a layout for a game of their own that succeeded.
Pre neki dan V i beba Z su nacrtali veliki crtež na podu. To je zapravo bio poligon za igru koja je usledila, a koju su sami izmislili.

Igloo / Iglo

2012-02-14T22:54:00.001+01:00

Finaly, there is snow. Lots of snow! We have a new igloo on our terrace, but here are some photos from two-years ago when we lived in a house with a backyard.

Konačno je pao veliki sneg. Na našoj terasi imamo novi iglo, ali ovo su fotografije od pre dve godine, kada smo živeli u kući sa dvorištem.

What's Wrong with Coloring Books and Cookie-Cutters? / Šta nije u redu sa bojankama i modlama za kolače

2012-02-03T00:56:00.000+01:00

I am a strong opponent of coloring books and cookie-cutters! (Although using them can make some really beautiful cookies!) And here's why:

Art and art expression of children and adults are different. While adults' art is mainly oriented to the final product, children's art, is oriented to the process. Very young children don't care much what their drawing or painting will look like. Therefore, they are free to experiment and play with different approaches when they create. In this freedom and spontaneity is the charm and beauty of children's creativity. Burden on the finished product, which adults are fond of, is what restrains the free creative process. However, adults often observe and criticize the children's artistic expression from this adult point of view: from the end product - usually meaning - realistic representation. This can cause great harm to children, most in terms of confidence and further desire to create. Even if the child itself did not care for the end-product, constant insistence of adults on it - will make him start seeking it in his drawings.

Ja sam veliki protivnik bojanki i modli za kolače! (iako se pomoću njih mogu napraviti veoma lepi kolači!) A evo i zašto: Likovni izraz i umetnost dece i odraslih se razlikuju. Dok je umetnost odraslih uglavnom orjentisana na krajnji proizvod, umetnost dece je orjentisana na proces. Deci najmlađeg uzrasta nije važno kako će njihov crtež ili slika izgledati. Zbog toga ona slobodno eksperimentišu i poigravaju se različitim pristupima kada stvaraju. U toj slobodi i spontanosti - kojih najčešće nema u kreacijama odraslih - leži čar i lepota dečjeg stvaralaštva. Opterećenost gotovim proizvodom, kojem su odrasli skloni, je ono što sputava slobodni kreativni proces. Međutim, odrasli često posmatraju i kritikuju dečji likovni izraz upravo sa aspekta stvaranja odraslih tj. krajnjeg proizvoda - i to najčešće realističnog prikaza ("da li liči?"). Time nanose deci veliku štetu, najviše u pogledu samopouzdanja i želje za stvaranjem. Jer, ako i nije marilo za krajnji proizvod, stalnim insistiranjem odraslih na njemu - počeće da ga traži u svojim crtežima.

Coloring books are, precisely, such a product of adults that celebrates a realistic depiction and reduce children's art activity to a single "correct" way: neat and precise coloring of a surface inside the given outline - with a strong request not to draw over it! An interesting request for a three-year old for example! It is so obvious that there is no room here for expressive doodles that are so characteristic for kids of this age. Should I mention that the accuracy and precision are not inherent in the visual arts! Think, for example - Jackson Pollock or Van Gogh. How neat and precise are their pictures?

Jean Van't Hul from the blog The Artful Parent writes about the reasons to avoid coloring books for children in her article for Babble and says:

· Coloring books teach children to be passive about their art. Rather than drawing something themselves, they are coloring in adult-drawn images. What kind of message this sends to children?  

· Coloring books teach children to compare their art to an adult’s. They teach them that adults draw "better", that children do not know how to draw well, and that they are good enough just to color in other people's drawings.  

· Coloring books set children up for failure. Coloring books impose a rule to color within the lines - and what if the line is crossed? It is treated as an error and failure. This unapproprieted request for children sets a sense of failure that discourages them for further creation.  

· Scribbling is linked to future literacy. The more toddlers scribble and draw, the easier it is for them to learn to write later. As toddlers scribble, they learn to make all the shapes necessary to write the alphabet. Coloring inside predetermined lines doesn’t allow this to happen.

· Coloring books prevent children to present their personal interpreatation of the world.

Similarly, "dot to dot" drawings (in which the child makes a drawing by drawing lines from dot to dot that are marked by numbers), cookie-cutters, sand molds, stamps with cartoon characters and similar 'so called creative' toys - actually have a negative impact on children's artistic expression and should be avoided.

Bojanke su, upravo, takav jedan proizvod odraslih, koji veliča realistički prikaz a likovnu aktivnost dece svodi na jedan jedini "ispravan" način a to je: uredno i precizno bojenje površine unutar zadatih linija - koje nikako ne bi smelo tom prilikom preći! Zanimljiv zahtev za npr. jednog trogodišnjaka! Ekspresivnom žvrljanju kojem su mnoga deca tog uzrasta sklona - ovde nema mesta. Osim toga, urednost i preciznost uopšte nisu svojstveni likovnoj umetnosti! Setite se npr. Džeksona Poloka ili Van Goga. Koliko su njihove slike uredne i precizne?

Jean Van't Hul sa bloga The Artful Parent u svom članku za Babble piše o razlozima zbog kojih bi trebalo izbegavati bojanke za decu i među njima navodi:

· Bojanke uče decu da budu pasivna u odnosu na sopstveno stvaralaštvo. Umesto da sama nešto nacrtaju, ona samo boje crteže odraslih. Kakvu poruku ovo šalje deci?

· Bojanke uče decu da stalno porede svoje crteže sa crtežima odraslih. Uče ih da odrasli crtaju "bolje", a da deca ne umeju da crtaju, te da su dovoljno dobra samo da oboje tuđe crteže.

· Bojanke nameću pravilo da se boji unutar linija - a šta kada se linija pređe? To se tretira kao greška. U startu se pred decu stavlja zahtev koji ne mogu izvršiti, i to kod dece izaziva osećaj neuspešnosti koji ih demotiviše za dalje stvaranje.

· Žvrljanje priprema decu i za pisanje. Žvrljajući deca spontano proizvode i uče sve pokrete i oblike koji su neophodni kasnije za pisanje slova. Bojenje unutar zadatih linija to ne omogućava.

· Bojanke onemogućavaju decu da prikažu svoju ličnu interpreatciju sveta. Bojanke su interpreatcije sveta odraslih i zato su one prepreka likovnom razvoju.

Na sličan način crteži tipa "tačka po tačka" (u kojem dete izrađuje crtež povlačeći linije od tačke do tačke koje su obeležene brojevima), modle za kolače, kalupi za pesak, pečati sa likovima iz crtanih filmova i slični "kreativni" proizvodi - zapravo loše utiču na dečji likovni izraz i trebalo bi ih izbegavati.

However, I think that one should not make too much drama out of the whole thing, and in order to avoid a counter-effect and longing - which bans of any kind can produce - I allow our winter cookie-cutters to periodically visit our kitchen. If those are not offered to children as the only form of creation, but only occasionally and in special circumstances, then, I guess they can't be so harmful. Or am I wrong?        

Međutim, ne treba praviti ni preveliku dramu od cele stvari, i da bih izbegla kontra-efekat i čežnju, koju zabrane svake vrste mogu da proizvedu, dopuštam našim zimskim modlama za kolače da povremeno posete našu kuhinju. Ukoliko se one ne nude deci kao jedini vid stvaranja, već samo ponekad i u posebnim prilikama, onda, pretpostavljam da ne mogu biti toliko štetne. Ili grešim?

Cookies for Santa / Keksići za Deda Mraza

2012-01-13T01:09:00.000+01:00

Every New Year Eve we make cookies and tea for Santa. We leave them by the tree so he can have a snack and warm up a little bit when he brings the presents to our home.
These are our "Octopus" cookies that never become octopuses with some powdered sugar icing (1 cup powdered sugar, 1 tablespoon milk or water, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla).
This time, we used some cookie cutters and I also cut out some shapes with the knife.
V helped me make the dough and cut the shapes with the cookie cutters, but he didn't want to draw on them with the icing, so I did it myself. I usually avoid drawing myself in front of V, since that can discourage his drawing, but this time of year, with all the lights and glitter, I just couldn't resist!
They came out nice, and I am sure Santa liked them a lot! But!
There is a "But!" here, that I shall write about in my next post!
Happy New Year!

Svakog 31. decembra popodne pravimo kolače i čaj za Deda Mraza. Ostavljamo ih pored jelke tako da Deda Mraz može malo da se zasladi i ugreje kad donese poklone u naš dom. To su naši kolači-Hobotnice koji nikada ne postanu hobotnice sa belom šećernom glazurom (1 čaša šećera u prahu, 1 kašika mleka ili vode, 1 / 2 kašičice vanile). Ovaj put smo koristili modle za kolače, a neke oblike sam isekla nožem. V mi je pomogao da napravim testo i da izrežem kolače modlama, ali nije želeo da ih iscrtava belom glazurom, tako da sam to sama uradila. Obično izbegavam da crtam pred V-om, jer to može da obeshrabri njegovo crtanje, ali u ovo doba godine, sa svim svetlima i sjajem, nisam mogla da odolim! Kolači su ispali lepo, i sigurna sam da su se svideli Deda Mrazu. Ali!
Ovde postoji jedno "Ali!", ali o njemu ću pisati u sledećem postu!
Srećna Nova godina!

Recycled paper tree ornaments / Ukrasi od ručno pravljenog papira

2011-12-30T00:05:00.000+01:00

Here is how we made our tree ornaments last year.
Ovako smo napravili ukrase za jelku prošle godine.

New Year Glitter or The Dragon Powder? / Novogodišnji ili zmajev prah?

2011-12-29T01:09:00.000+01:00

Ok, here is a simple activity (collage) for the little ones that I tried to do with V the other day: I thought that it was an appropriate New Year's activity because of the glitter...
First, he painted with some white glue on paper using a paint-brush, and then poured some glitter powder over it. The photo above shows how the collage turned out. But. Here is what actually happened:

Ovo je jedna jednostavna aktivnost za decu (jedna vrsta kolaža) koju sam želela da isprobam sa V-om pre neki dan: pomislila sam kako je to vrlo prigodna novogodišnja aktivnost zbog svetlucavog praha koji se koristi...
Prvo je V malo slikao lepkom (obično koristimo drvofiks koji nanosimo četkom) po papiru, a zatim smo ceo papir posuli svetlucavim prahom. Višak praha smo otresli s papira nazad u kutiju. Prah je ostao samo na onim mestima na kojima je nanešen lepak. Na fotografiji iznad se vidi kako je taj kolaž na kraju ispao. Ali. Evo šta se zapravo desilo:

The process is always more important to the kids than the end product - the same as playing with all sorts of (art) materials. And that's the way it should be. V made only one collage, but the glitter-powder fascinated him so much (he thought that it was the dragon's powder), that he ended up playing with it for the next two (yes, two!!) hours, with no paper and no glue, pouring it, mixing it, scooping it, etc. Cooking!
New Year glitter? Maybe for mama. But for him, it was the real dragon's powder, magical and miraculous, the one ingredient that makes the shiniest lunches of all.

Deci je proces uvek važniji od proizvoda. Kao i igra sa različitim materijalima. I tako i treba da bude. V je napravio samo jedan kolaž, ali svetlucavi prah ga je toliko očarao (V je pomislio da je to zmajev prah), da se naredna dva sata (da, dva sata!) igrao s njim (bez papira i lepka), sipajući ga i presipajući iz jedne činije u drugu, u treću, u četvrtu, mešajući ga kašičicom, itd. Kuvajući!
Novogodišnji prah? Da, možda za mamu. Ali za njega - to je bio pravi pravcati zmajev prah, čudotvoran i magičan. Onaj tajni sastojak od kojeg se pravi najbolji i najsjaniji ručak!

New Year Countdown / Slatko novogodišnje odbrojavanje

2011-12-19T23:00:00.000+01:00

We celebrate the (orthodox) Christmas on January 7th. So, here the New Year comes first, and our our big countdown is the countdown to New Year. Last year I made this version of an 'advent' calendar to help V wait for it and count the days throughout december.

Kalendari za odbrojavanje su veoma popularni u svetu. To su najčešće bombonjere sa 24 'prozorčića' od kojih je svaki obeležen brojem, poput ove. Iza svakog prozorčića je čokoladica. Odbrojavanje počinje 1. decembra i traje do Badnje večeri - 24. decembra.

Danas postoje brojne varijacije ovakvih kalendara.

Pošto kod nas prvo stiže Nova Godina, i ona je ta koju sa nestrpljanjem očekujemo, mi brojimo dane do Nove Godine. Prošle godine smo okitili jelku 1.decembra. Svaki dan je V pitao: "Kada dolazi Nova Godina?" Da bih mu pomogla u iščekivanju, napravila sam ove slatke zamotuljke, za svaki dan po jedan - i objasnila da kad otvori poslednji zamotaljak - da je tad Nova Godina!

Our first storytime session / Naša prva pripovedačka seansa

2011-12-15T00:38:00.001+01:00

Last saturday we had our first storytime session in our local children's library. We had three stories told:

Prošle subote smo imali našu prvu pripovedačku seansu - Vreme za priču - u dečjoj biblioteci Zmaj. Ispričane su tri priče:

1. Fairytale About a Big Beet - russian tale: a grandfather gets help from grandmother, grandaughter, grandson, dog, cat and a mouse in an attempt to pull the big beet out of the ground.

1. Deda i repa - ruska narodna priča: dedi pomažu baka, unuci, pas, mačka i mali miš u pokušaju da izvuče veliku repu iz zemlje.

2. A Colorful Butterfly (by Ružica Pljakić and Dobrila Minić): A colorless butterfly gets his colors from flowers of various colors and becomes a beautiful butterfly.

2. Šareni leptir (Ružica Pljakić i Dobrila Minić): Bezbojni leptir dobija boje i šare od raznobojnog cveća i postaje prelepi šareni leptir.

3. The Giving Tree (by Shel Siverstein): This is a love story between a boy and a tree. The tree possesses unconditional love for a young boy, and the boy, like all of us, grows up and wants more and more from life and the tree.
3. Dobro drvo (Šel Silverstejn): Ovo je priča o ljubavi između jednog dečaka i drveta. Drvo bezuslovno voli dečaka, a dečak, kao svi mi ljudi, raste i želi još i još od života i drveta.

Storytime / Vreme za priču

2011-12-10T18:51:00.000+01:00

Unfortunately, there is no such thing like Storytime or Storytelling in children libraries, here in Serbia. And I so wished that my kids could go to the library and hear a story or a few from time to time, told in a special - storytelling way! You folks, who are reading this post in english, probably know very well what storytime is, and therefore I think no need to explain!
There is a beautiful small children library near our home that we love to visit often. V loves it, and he is a member since he was 1,5 years old. It has nice toys, nice baby and children books, and a beautiful space in an old house. But no storytime!
So, I decided to create a storytime programme myself and offer it to the library. They accepted the offer! For the last few months I have been working on this with two of my good friends - Katarina who is a visual artist, and Ivan - who is an actor.
We created six storytime sessions for kids ages 4-6, each of them consisting of few stories. First, we made a selection of stories, Katarina made all the visual props necessary for telling the stories and tales (felt board sets, dolls, overhead transparencies, etc.), and Ivan prepared the stories for telling them! Papa V made some photos and posters, and this is the poster for our first storytime session that was today!
V was watching and listening the stories with delight, and I was so so happy that this small dream of mine - came true! I shall write more about our stories in the days that come!

Nažalost, u našim bibliotekama ne postoji Pripovedanje priča (engl. Storytelling). Pripovedanje priča je umetnost pripovedanja priča u kojoj se koriste jezik, zvuk, i/ili fizički pokret i gestikulacija kako bi se pred određenom publikom oživeli i otkrili elementi i slike jedne priče. Kada se priče pripovedaju deci često se koriste i različiti vizuelni predlošci i rekviziti - poput slika ili lutaka - koji pomažu u vizuelizaciji priče. U dečjim bibliotekama širom sveta pripovedanje priča je neizostavni deo redovnih programa namenjenih deci.

V je član dečje biblioteke Čika Jova Zmaj u Hilandarskoj ulici u Beogradu od svoje prve godine. Često je posećujemo i volimo tamo da idemo, jer ima igračaka, knjiga za bebe i decu svih uzrasta a prostor je predivan, smešten u jednoj staroj beogradskoj kući. Ali, nema pripovedanja priča! Zbog toga sam odlučila da sama osmislim i uz pomoć prijatelja realizujem pripovedačke seanse, po uzoru na one koje sam videla u dečjim bibliotekama u Americi I Evropi, koje bih potom ponudila našoj biblioteci. Biblioteka Zmaj je ponudu prihvatila! Poslednjih nekoliko meseci sam radila na pripremanju ovih seansi sa svojim prijateljima Katarinom - umetnicom, i Ivanom - glumcem. Pripremili smo šest pripovedačkih seansi za decu uzrasta od 4-6 godina, a u okviru svake seanse planirano je da se ispriča nekoliko priča. Prvo smo napravili izbor priča prema uzrastu i prema mogućnostima za vizuelno predstavljanje - Katarina je napravila sve vizuelne rekvizite neophodne za pripovedanje, a Ivan je priče pripremio i malo prilagodio za ovu vrstu pripovedanja (storytelling). Tata V je napravio fotografije i plakate a ovo je plakat za našu prvu pripovedačku seansu koja se održala danas!

V je sa oduševljenjem posmatrao i slušao priče, a ja sam presrećna što se jedan moj mali san ostvario! U narednim danima pisaću još o ovom slatkom pripovedanju!

Dinosaur (foot)prints in play dough/ Tragovi dinosaurusa u testu

2011-12-03T01:04:00.000+01:00

V is crazy about dinosaurus. He loves them, knows everything about them, always pretending to be one of them, moving like them, etc. The other day I made some play dough (2 cups flour, 1 cup salt, 3/4 cup water, 1 spoon of oil, food color) that is one of his favourite art materials, and invited him and his friend to make some dinosaur footprints in it. They loved it but their game turned out much more than I expected! Even Baby Z played the game!

V obožava dinosauruse. Zna sve o njima, stalno se pretvara da je neki od donsaurusa, kreće se kao oni, itd. Pre neki dan sam napravila testo za vajanje, jedan od njegovih omiljenih likovnih materijala (2 čaše brašna, 1 čaša soli, 3/4 čaše vode, 1 supena kašika ulja, boja za hranu) i pozvala njega i njegovog drugara da naprave otiske igrčaka-dinosaurusa u njemu. Jako im se to dopalo, ali su njihova igra i istraživanje mogućnosti materijala prevazišli moja očekivanja. Čak je Beba Z učestvovala u igri!

Dancing pastels / Pasteli koji plešu

2011-11-23T02:33:00.003+01:00

I found a beautiful surprise today: I got a nice blog award from Natasha of Leptir -montessori blog. Thank you, Natasha! This award has 2 rules: specify 3 songs that are imopratnt to you and tell what you dreamed about.
I always have a problem when I have to specify things I really like. They kinda disappear out of my head. So instead of specifying 3 songs that are important to me, I decided to do another thing: these days V and I are listening to a CD that we got with this book. V loves it! We never did any art activities related to music before (I never found it inspirational), but since we are listening this CD all the time, I decided to give it a try.
We imagined that our pastels danced to the music, and here is what V's dances looked like:

Danas sam našla divno iznenađenje: dobila sam nagradu Nice blog! od Nataše (Leptir - montessori blog). Hvala Nataša! Ova nagrada ima dva pravila: navesti tri pesme koje su važne za vas i ispričati san koji ste sanjali.

Uvek mi je problem kada treba da nabrojim stvari koje volim. Kao da tada iščeznu iz glave. Zato, umesto da nabrojim 3 pesme koje su mi važne, odlučila sam da uradim sledeće: ovih dana V i ja slušamo CD koji smo dobili zajedno sa ovom knjigom. V ga obožava. Nikada nismo radili likovne aktivnosti sa slušanjem muzike (nikada mi to nije bilo inspirativno), ali kako ovaj CD slušamo stalno, odlučila sam da probam. Zamislili smo da pasteli plešu uz muziku i evo, kako su V-ovi pasteli plesali:

1. Offenbach: Can Can

2. Brahms: Hungarian dance No5

3. Tchaikovsky: 'Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy' from The Nutcraker

4. Beethoven: Symphony No.6 (IV 'Thunderstorm')

5. Mozart: Sonata in C major K.545 (Movement I. Allegro)

And, I must admit that I found this activity very interesting and fun. The dancing pastels really helped us hear the music better! And we all enjoyed it. Even Baby Z danced with us and her pastels!

So, these compositions were for the songs, and this one is for the dream:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fHlfNYY1YIY

And the award goes to: Let the children play Zach Aboard The Artful Parent Manuales

Bakers and Astronauts Exploring the outdoor classroom

Moram priznati da sam nepravedno bila potcenila ovu aktivnost! Plesanje pastelom po papiru nam je zaista pomoglo da bolje čujemo muziku! Svi smo uživali, čak je i Beba Z plesala sa nama i sa svojim pastelima.

Dakle, ovo su bile kompozicije umesto 3 pesme, a ova koja sledi je umesto sna:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fHlfNYY1YIY

A nagrada ide: Let the children play Zach Aboard The Artful Parent Manuales

Bakers and Astronauts Exploring the outdoor classroom

A House for Fairy-Babies / Kućica za bebe-vile

2011-11-04T00:55:00.000+01:00

Fairy houses are small nature structures for the fairies and other nature friends to visit. Building a fairy house is a simple activity from the repertoire of Waldorf nature-inspired activities. Creating a fairy house encourages children to go outside and connect with the natural world, and at the same time it nurtures care and respect for the nature.

All you need to build a fairy house are some natural items (leaves, sticks, pebbels), a little imagination and a pinch of magic!

Kućice za vile su male strukture od prirodnih materijala (grančica, lišća, kamenčića...) napravljene za vile i druga šumska bića. Građenje kućica za vile je jednostavna aktivnost iz repertoara Valdorf aktivnosti inspirisanih prirodom. Pravljenje ovih kućica podstiče decu da izađu napolje, da provode vreme u prirodi, razvijajući istovremeno odnos poštovanja i ljubavi prema njoj.

Sve što je neophodno da bi se napravila kućica za vilu je malo sakupljenih prirodnih materijala, malo mašte i prstohvat magije!

I thought that it would be interesting to make a house for a fairy baby. If we made it with enough love and care, maybe, just maybe, a fairy baby would come and sleep in it.

So we made it with much love and much care, and went to sleep.

And this is what we found in the morning:

Pomislila sam da bi bilo jako lepo napraviti i kućicu za male bebe vile. Ukoliko bismo je napravili sa puno ljubavi i pažnje, onda bi možda, kozna, bebe vile došle i spavale u njoj.

Tako smo napravili kućicu sa puno ljubavi i puno pažnje, i potom otišli na spavanje.

Ujutro, kad smo se probudili, našli smo ovo:

A tiny little fairy baby lying in her nut-shell - smiling!

Malu bebu vilu kako leži u svojoj kolevci. I osmehuje se ;)

A Teepee and A Few Snakes / Vigvam i nekoliko zmija

2011-10-18T01:56:00.002+02:00

Big branches for a teepee... Velike grane za vigvam...

...small branches for little snakes... ... grančice za zmijice...

...some tied scarves for a big snake - Kaa (from The Jungle Book)...

...nekoliko zavezanih marama za veliku zmiju Ka (iz Knjige o džungli)...

...a flying (magic) carpet... ...jedan leteći ćilim...

...a boy and his imagination... ...dečak i njegova mašta...

Not much is needed for hours and hours of unineterrupted kid's play. And a happy mama.

Nije puno potrebno za sate i sate dečje igre i jednu srećnu mamu.

The Water Way / Put vode

2011-10-11T00:18:00.002+02:00

I saw this beautiful Water wall for the first time at the wonderful blog Let the children play - a perfect 'toy' for hot summer days! Since then I've been stumbling upon different water walls around the web, until we decided to make our own. Pouring water and watching it run down and through the bottles and pipes is not only refreshing but also exciting and relaxing at the same time.

Prvi put sam videla ovaj 'vodeni zid' na fantastičnom blogu Let the children play - savršenu 'igračku' za vruće, letnje dane! Od tada sam nailazila na 'vodene zidove' puno puta na mnogim blogovima, dok nismo odlučili da i sami napravimo svoj. Sipanje i posmatranje vode kako teče kroz providne flaše i cevi je ne samo osvežavajuće, nego i uzbudljivo i opuštajuće u isto vreme.

A Treehouse / Kućica na drvetu

2011-10-07T00:12:00.001+02:00

So, where did this spider web lead? Actually - nowhere. Well, not exactly nowhere, but to a beautiful spot under a green tree top. The only problem was that one couldn't stay in this spot, since there was not a deck, a place to sit or stand. So, naturally, we decided to make a treehouse, and in a few days, papa V was done!

Dakle, gde je vodila ova paukova mreža? Zapravo - nigde. Ustvari, ne baš nigde, već do jednog prelepog mesta u krošnji drveta. Jedini problem je bio što na ovom mestu u krošnji nije moglo da se boravi, jer nije postojala platforma na kojoj bi se stajalo ili sedelo, tako da se ideja o kućici na drvetu nametnula sama od sebe. Za nekoliko dana, tata V je napravio ovo:

A Spider Web / Paukova mreža

2011-09-25T01:44:00.001+02:00

Did I mention already that V is crazy about animals? Every day, all day long, he is pretending to be some animal. Can you imagine how happy and excited he was when papa said he was going to make him a big spider web, so he could climb like a real spider?

Da li sam već pomenula da je V lud za životinjama? Svaki dan, po ceo dan imitira neku životinju. Zamislite onda, koliko je bio uzbuđen i srećan kada mu je tata rekao da će napraviti veliku paukovu mrežu, po kojoj će moći da se penje kao pravi pauk.

This was a completly hand-made project and papa V enjoyed the whole process: going into the woods, finding a dry tree that could be used for the frame-construction, pulling the tree down, processing it: measuring, cutting, sanding it, and constructing! And finally, lacing the rope.

Tata V je uživao u svakom koraku izrade mreže - odlaženju u šumu, traženju i pronalaženju najadekvatnijeg drveta za ram za mrežu, obaranju drveta, njegovoj obradi: merenju, sečenju, šmirglanju i konstruisanju rama. I konačno, u razapinjanju i preplitanju kanapa.

Both papa V and I love wood. And we both love things made of wood. They are so noble, vibrant, live. Just look at those beautiful colors! I suppose that working with wood, and creating things out of wood is a great pleasure. Maybe as much as climbing a natural spider web? And we are so lucky to have an opportunity to do so!

Tata V i ja obožavamo drvo. Obožavamo predmete izrađene od drveta. Oni su prirodni, plemeniti i živi. Prelepih boja! Pretpostavljam da je rad sa drvetom i izrađivanje predmeta od drveta veliko zadovoljstvo. Možda isto onoliko koliko i penjanje jednog pauka - u zelene visine!

(photos by papa V)

A Swing / Ljuljaška

2011-09-18T03:02:00.001+02:00

Here is another handmade 'toy' that papa V made of 'the rope' and wood. A swing! I am not quite sure what kind of wood it is, but it's red-ish color is just so so beautiful!

Ovo je još jedna 'igračka' koju je tata V napravio od dotičnog kanapa i drveta. Nisam sigurna koje je drvo u pitanju, ali ima prelepu crvenkastu boju!

V was so happy to help his papa make the swing (even though it just meant pushing the rope through the hole :), but even happier trying it out, which was not easy at all. This swing also (as the rope ladder) requires using a special technique - finding balance and using the strength of arm muscles, in order to sit and swing. At first, V seemed kinda disappointed not being able to swing immediately and easily, I thought he would dislike it and give up trying, but a little practice here and there, and mostly pretending to be Mowgli, his favourite book character, and - voila! He swings like a small jungle monkey, (or should I say 'a little frog'?) and he loves his swing for helping him be one!

V je bio presrećan što je pomogao tati da napravi ljuljašku (iako je to značilo da samo provuče kanap kroz rupu :), ali još srećniji da je isproba, što nije bilo nimalo lako. Ova ljuljaška (kao i ove merdevine), zahteva da se savlada određena tehnika - da se pronađe ravnoteža i da se upotrebi snaga mišića ruku, kako bi se na njoj sedelo i ljuljalo. V je u početku delovao pomalo razočarano jer nije uspeo odmah da se ljulja, pomislila sam da mu se zbog toga neće dopasti i da će odustati od daljeg pokušavanja. Međutim, malo vežbe tu i tamo, a naročito uživljavanja u ulogu Moglija, omiljenog lika iz knjiga, i - voila! Ljulja se kao pravo malo majmunče iz džungle (ili treba reći žabica?), i obožava svoju ljljašku koja mu omogućava da to i bude.

The most beautiful present / Najlepši poklon

2011-09-16T02:35:00.001+02:00

For V's birthday (that was back in winter) we got a nice amount of money from his aunt N and uncle V who live in Moscow, to buy him a nice present. We wanted to use the money for something really special, but at the time we did not know what that would be. So we saved the money, until, hm, summer. When we came to our summer-house, we knew what we would spend the money on.

Za V-ov rođendan (koji je bio u januaru) dobili smo lepu sumu novca od tetke N i teče V iz Moskve da mu kupimo neki lep poklon. Želeli smo da potrošimo novac na nešto zaista posebno, ali tada nismo znali šta bi to moglo biti, tako da smo novac sačuvali do, eto, leta.

Kad smo došli na vikendicu shvatili smo šta možemo da kupimo od dobijenog novca.

Rope!

We went to a nautical supplies store and bought more than 100 metres of synthetic rope (that doesn't rot from moisture) of different diameters, some nails, screws, steel cable and carabineers.

Kanap!
Otišli smo na buvljak i radnju nautičke opreme i kupili više od 100 metara sintetičkog kanapa (koji ne truli) različite debljine, zatim eksere, šrafove, čeličnu sajlu i karabinjere.

And then, papa V spent some days making the most beautiful 'toys' for V to play and - climb!

A zatim je tata V proveo nekoliko dana praveći najlepše 'igračke' za V-a da se igra i - penje!

This is one of them - a rope ladder, that can be used for climbing and swinging. It is actually not easy at all to climb this ladder and it requires a lot of practice to master the skill! Just perfect for a boy who loves climbing.

Ovo je jedna od njih - merdevine koje mogu služiti za penjanje ili ljuljanje. Penjanje uz njih je prilično teško i zahteva dosta vežbe kako bi se savladala veština. Pravi izazov za dečaka koji voli da se penje!

A big wall painting / Slikanje na zidu

2011-09-08T00:43:00.000+02:00

In the corner of our backyard there is a small brick shed that was once ment for chicken. We never liked it, because it was a kind of construction that absolutely did not fit into this beautiful nature space. So after a little thinking what to do with it to make it more appropriate and 'acceptable', we came to the idea to paint the red brick wall in white, and make a surface for painting!

U dnu našeg dvorišta nalazi se jedna mala šupa od crvenih cigli, koja je nekada bila namenjena kokoškama, dok je deda još bio živ. Nikada nam se nije dopadala, jer se uopšte nije uklapala u ovaj prirodni, šumski ambijent. Nakon malo razmišljanja o tome šta da uradimo s njom, kako bismo je učinili prikladnijom i za nas prihvatljivijom, došli smo na ideju da crveni zid od cigala ofarbamo u belo i tako napravimo podlogu za slikanje.

And here it is! Perfect for large-scale painting! Perfect for messy art! Perfect for clean-up! And perfect for being outside!

I evo ga! Savršen za slikanje širokim četkama! Savršen za mazanje, brljanje bojama i potom čišćenje, jer je napolju!

And what I like the most about it is that kids (and parents) can paint together! It is that big!

I ono što najviše volim u vezi sa ovim zidom je što deca (i odrasli) mogu zajedno da slikaju! Eto toliki je taj zid.

The Banging Wall in the woods / Šumski bubanj

2011-09-03T15:13:00.000+02:00

The garden of our summer-house and it's backyard are huge! We always daydreamed to make a natural playspace for our kids here, so when V was born, we started making one thing at a time.

Playing music on kitchen pans and dishes is something most kids do and enjoy doing. But a Banging Wall that I saw in this book, is something I fell in love with the moment I saw it.

Dvorište naše vikendice je ogromno! Uvek smo maštali o tome da svojoj deci tu napravimo igralište od prirodnih materijala, i kad se V rodio počeli smo da pravimo jednu po jednu "igračku".
Lupanje na šerpama i loncima u kuhinji je omiljena igra mnogih mališana. Međutim kada sam videla "muzički zid" od šerpi i poklopaca u ovoj knjizi, oduševila sam se i znala da ćemo morati i mi da napravimo nešto slično!

We made our first Banging Wall when V was 1,5 years old in the backyard of the house. We all loved it. But, the strings got rotten from rain, snow and sun, and the Banging Wall fell apart, so we had to make it again, this time with boat-strings, that don't get rotten. V is big enough now to help in the process: washing old pans, holding and tying them, but mostly enjoying the water on his little feet.

Naš prvi "muzički zid", tj. šumski bubanj, kako su ga nazvali naši prijatelji, napravili smo u šumici iz kuće kada je V imao 1,5 godinu. Svima nam se dopao.
Ali, kanap, s kojim smo povezali šerpe i lonce, je istrulio od kiše, snega i sunca, i naš šumski bubanj se raspao, tako da smo morali ponovo da ga napravimo, ovoga puta sa brodskim kanapom koji ne truli.
V. je sada dovoljno veliki te je mogao da pomaže u izradi: u pranju šerpi, pridržavanju i vezivanju, mada najviše u prskanju vodom i pljuskanju barica.

And of course - experimenting with the different sounds that the pans of different shape and size produce, while interrupting the beautiful and relaxing sounds of nature - the one of birds and crickets!

I naravno, u istraživanju različitog zvuka koje šerpe različitih oblika i veličina proizvode, narušavajući pri tom, pomalo grubo, nežne i opuštajuće zvuke prirode - cvrkut ptica i zujanje zrikavaca. Tek toliko da se označi prisustvo dece.

Our summer days in nature / Letnji dani u prirodi

2011-09-01T23:17:00.000+02:00

We are so so lucky to have a house in the country-side where we can spend our hot summer days! It is completely surrounded with woods and nature.

There are so many wonderful things to do here with kids, and it is beautiful to see that they enjoy it so much.

So in the days and posts that come I shall share with you some details from our summer days spent here.

Stay tuned!

Naša leta provodimo u vikendici u prirodi koja je potpuno okružena šumom.

Obožavamo život koji živimo dok smo tu.

Ima toliko zanimljivih i lepih stvari koje možemo raditi sa decom napolju, i lepo je videti da i oni uživaju u tome.

U narednim danima i postovima podeliću sa vama neke crtice iz života i leta provedenog ovde.

Artists scribble, too / I umetnici žvrljaju

2011-08-29T03:02:00.000+02:00

Cy Twombly, Untitled 1970

One of my favourite artists ever is Cy Twombly. And what do you think he does? He scribbles! His whole art is based on scribbling!

Jedan od mojih omiljenih umetnika je američki slikar Saj Tvombli (Cy Twombly). I šta mislite da on radi? On žvrlja! Celokupna njegova umetnost zasnovana je na žvrljanju!

Cy Twombly, Academy 1955

Cy Twombly, Untitled 1955

Cy Twombly, Sunset 1957

Another artist that I love is Jean Dubuffet. Through his art he shows much appreciation for scribbles!

Drugi umetnik kojeg mnogo volim je Žan Dibife (Jean Dubuffet), koji kroz svoju umetnost, takođe pokazuje koliko ceni žvrljanje.

Jean Dubuffet, Activation XLVII, 1985

There are so many other artsits that made their own art based on children art: Paul Klee, Juan Miro, Jean Michel Basquiat, Karel Appel, etc. They all thought that the expression of a child is much more sincere and authentic than the one of adults. Picasso said it took him four years to paint like Raphael, but all his life to paint like a child.

Postoji još mnogo umetnika koji su radili svoju umetnost pod uticajem dečje umetnosti: Pol Kle (Paul Klee), Huan Miro (Juan Miro), Žan-Mišel Baskia (Jean Michel Basquiat), Karel Apel (Karel Appel), itd. Svi su oni smatrali da je dečji izraz iskreniji i autentičniji od izraza odraslih. Pikaso je rekao da mu je bilo potrebno četiri godine da nauči da slika kao Rafael, ali ceo život da nauči da slika kao dete.

Karel Appel, 1959

So why is children's art so undervalued? Why do parents first (among others) undervalue the art of their own children? And why is it that they want to rush them and force to draw realistic drawings, sometimes even prohibiting them to scribble?
Any ideas why?

Dakle, zašto je onda dečja umetnost toliko potcenjena? Zašto roditelji prvi potcenjuju umetnost svoje dece? I zašto imaju potrebu da ih požuruju i teraju da crtaju realistično, ponekada im čak braneći da žvrljaju?
Imate li ideju zašto?

How to encourage scribbling? / Kako podsticati žvrljanje?

2011-08-23T10:08:00.000+02:00

Very often, first scribbling starts as a child pounds the pencil on the paper. The sound that the child hears as doing this, encourages him to continue pounding. Since the pencil leaves a visual trace on the paper, the kid notes cause and effect.

I love playing 'visual games' with my kids. These are little invented games that result in something visual (such as here and here).They are so designed to direct the child to the process or action, not the product.

We can encourage children to scribble with questions relating to sound, movement of the pencil, it's direction: How loud can your pencil make a sound? What kind of sounds can it make? How fast (high) can it jump? Can the pencil crawl? Is it possible to spin it? Can it pop on to the top of paper? Can it come down?

Even though toddlers and very young kids, actually don't need encouraging scribbling, since it is so natural to them, this is a very nice way to just play with them. Even older kids will enjoy this game.

Vrlo često, prva žvrljanja počinju tako što dete udara olovkom po papiru. Zvuk koji dete čuje, ohrabruje ga da nastavi sa udaranjem. Pošto olovka ostavlja i vidljiv trag na papiru, dete vizuelno uočava uzrok i posledicu.

Volim da se igram "likovnih igara" sa svojom decom. To su male izmišljene igre koje imaju za posledicu nešto vizuelno (kao npr. ovde i ovde). Tako su smišljene da usmere dete na proces ili akciju, a ne na proizvod.

Npr. pitanjima koja se odnose na zvuk, kretanje, pravac, možemo podsticati dete da žvrlja: Koliko glasno može da se čuje tvoja olovka? Koliko brzo (visoko) može da skače? Može li da puzi? Može li da se vrti? Može li da se popone do vrha papira? A da se spusti?

Iako veoma maloj deci, zapravo ne treba podsticaj da bi žvrljala, jer to rade spontano i prirodno, ovo je lep način da se poigramo sa njima. Čak će i malo starija deca uživati u ovoj igri.

'Only on paper' / 'Samo po papiru'

2011-08-21T02:48:00.000+02:00

I teach Baby Z to draw "only on paper" (for now). I prefer using this affirmative sentence instead of negative sentences like "we don't draw on the table or the wall". A lot of repetition is necessary in order for a toddler to accept and understand this. Every time the point of her pencil slips off the paper to the table, I gently move it back to the paper and say: "We draw only on paper."

Before I was a mom I thought, that one day, I would let my own kids draw where ever they wanted - in order not to inhibit them! Ahem. Now I see that this was an unrealistic concept. How would I, then, explain to them that it is ok to draw on the walls in our house, but that it's not ok to draw on the walls in grandma's house, aunt's house, friends, or any other place? And how would I, then, explain to a kid (toddler), that it is ok to draw on the walls, but that it's not ok to draw on furniture, clothes, floors and carpets, shoes...?

Now I think that it is totally ok to explain a kid (toddler) that there are places ment for drawing, and other places that are not. What is important here is to make it clear - drawing (scribbling) is ok, but some places are not ment for it!

When drawings (scribbles) appear at 'undesired' places, it's ok to involve the kid in the cleaning process, without making a big deal out of it, and showing that cleaning is a normal part of creating (a mess!), and also making it clear that the scribbling is ok, but the place for it was not!

Za sada učim bebu Z da crta "samo po papiru". Više volim da koristim afirmativne rečenice - šta sme da radi, nego zabrane tipa "ne crta se po stolu ili ne crta se po zidu".
Potrebno je puno ponavljanja da bi dete ovo usvojilo. Svaki put kada vrh njenog flomastera ili olovke sklizne sa papira na sto, vratim ga na papir i kažem: "samo po papiru".
Dok nisam postala mama mislila sam da ću - jednoga dana - svojoj deci dozvoljavati da crtaju gde god žele - da ih, kao, ne bih sputavala. Međutim, sada vidim da to nije realno. Kako bih onda objasnila detetu da se sme crtati po zidu naše kuće, ali ne i kod bake, ne kod tetke, ne u vrtiću, ne na drugim mestima. I kako bih objasnila detetu da se sme cratati po zidu, ali ne i po nameštaju, odeći, podu, cipelama...?
Sada mislim da je sasvim u redu objasniti detetu da je na nekim mestima u redu crtati, a na nekim drugim mestima - ne. Važno je samo da, tom prilikom, ne pošaljemo detetu poruku da žvrljanje nije u redu ili da ga povezujemo sa negativnim osećanjima - ljutnjom, omalovažavanjem (o ovome je već bilo reči ovde), već da budemo precizni: žvrljanje je ok, ali neka mesta nisu za žvrljanje.
Kada se i desi da dete crta na "nedozvoljenim" mestima, ne treba ga grditi. Dobro bi bilo uključiti ga u proces čišćenja, bez pridavanja prevelikog značaja tome i prikazujući čišćenje kao normalan i sastavni deo stvaranja, pri tom vodeći računa da detetu bude jasno da je njegovo crtanje (žvrljanje) ok, ali da nije odabrao dobro mesto za to. Odmah zatim, možemo mu ponuditi papir i ponoviti da se crta "samo po papiru."