Drawing with Turtles: A Visual Arts Inquiry into Place, Civic Voice, and Sustainability

Child's drawing of a turtle

Dr Gai Lindsay, with Su Garrett and Mel Elderton (Explore & Develop, Annandale) This blog post is a celebration of the investigation of the 2025 Muruduwin children, a group of three to five year old children at Explore & Develop Annandale.  We acknowledge the Muruduwin teachers and educators who curated the children’s work: Linh, Heather, … Continue reading Drawing with Turtles: A Visual Arts Inquiry into Place, Civic Voice, and Sustainability →

Art Play and Inquiry: The Why, What and How of Visual Arts Education with Young Children

Child paints with watercolour. Image shows hand above circles of colour.

In this blog, I share some questions and answers to introduce you to our forthcoming book. It took just under three years of collaborative writing to write the book with my co-authors, Dr Sarah Probine, Dr Rachel Denee and Denise Savins. I would also like to recognise Dr Lisa Terreni for our initial discussions about … Continue reading Art Play and Inquiry: The Why, What and How of Visual Arts Education with Young Children →

A tale of Ho Chi Minh City: An Artful Project of inquiry

Dr Gai Lindsay & introducing Leonè Van Rooyen (Head teacher, Penguin Class, Saigon Kids 1) A rich partnership I am so thankful for my partnership with Saigon Kids in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. For several years, I have regularly visited Vietnam to conduct research and delivery professional learning sessions with the amazing Saigon Kids … Continue reading A tale of Ho Chi Minh City: An Artful Project of inquiry →

Art inside, outside and all around: Children as visible and engaged citizens

Ruth Harper - East West Childcare and Kindergarten, Melbourne, Australia Introduction by Dr Gai Lindsay Children are citizens in their communities and have the same rights as all citizens to visit, experience and be seen (and heard) in public spaces, including public transport, libraries, museums and exhibitions. The convention on the Rights of the Child … Continue reading Art inside, outside and all around: Children as visible and engaged citizens →

Layers of Experience: Visual arts explorations with babies and toddlers

By Sally Maher (with Dr Gai Lindsay) INTRODUCTION Please let me introduce you to Sally Maher, a Bachelor of Education – The Early Years pre-service teacher education student at the University of Wollongong, Australia. AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY: I am a University of Wollongong Student currently studying in the Bachelor of Education-The Early Years degree. While studying, … Continue reading Layers of Experience: Visual arts explorations with babies and toddlers →

VISUAL ARTS IN EARLY CHILDHOOD PROFESSIONAL LEARNING RESOURCES

Dr Gai Lindsay Dear art in early childhood friends, It is hard to believe we are nearing the end of yet another year. 2023 is promising to be another busy year – I think perhaps they speed up as I get older. What is very exciting for me is witnessing an increase in the number … Continue reading VISUAL ARTS IN EARLY CHILDHOOD PROFESSIONAL LEARNING RESOURCES →

Material encounters: Ideas for mark-making and drawing

Dr. Gai Lindsay, School of Education, University of Wollongong First written to support Camp Australia’s BIG ART COMP 2022, this blog shared a range of mark making and drawing ideas. There are so many rich potentials for mark making. Try new materials and take time to explore their properties. Add them to your own visual … Continue reading Material encounters: Ideas for mark-making and drawing →

HOW TO ENCOURAGE CREATIVITY IN CHILDREN

Dr. Gai Lindsay, School of Education, University of Wollongong First written to support Camp Australia's BIG ART COMP 2022, this blog post presents a range of provocations and ideas regarding how to support and encourage children's creativity. It outlines for parents and educators what to do to support children's creative expression - and what NOT … Continue reading HOW TO ENCOURAGE CREATIVITY IN CHILDREN →

“Who am I in the artistic lives and learning of children?” Exploring and expressing the arts identity of pre-service early childhood teachers

By Dr Gai Lindsay With thanks to EYCA301 Early Years students, School of Education, UOW. My research and teaching focus on the visual arts identity, self-efficacy beliefs and knowledge of early childhood educators. Indeed, my research and practice suggest that it is not unusual to hear early childhood professionals (and the broader population) announce that … Continue reading “Who am I in the artistic lives and learning of children?” Exploring and expressing the arts identity of pre-service early childhood teachers →