Learn by Design Erasmus Project

Project Title

Learn by Design

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : School Exchange Partnerships

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2019

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses; Research and innovation

Project Summary

Loose Part Theory has originally been suggested by Simon Nicholson in 70’s as an architectural approach and later it influenced the game researchers and professionals who design play areas for kids. Nicholson believes that Loose Parts strengthens creativity. In a game, Loose parts can be switched, moved, lined up, redesigned, decomposed into its parts and recombined many times in many variations.
A requirement for a manual while using the Loose Parts alone or with other materials can not be mentioned. These can be natural or synthetic materials found in the environment of early childhood education. For instance, they may be stones, blocks, beads, lofts, sand, pebbles , fabric, wood, timber, palette, flowers, ropes, thick ropes, tree branches, boxes, baskets, rubber bands, balls, shells, seeds etc. Loose Materials at playgrounds enables children to use them as they wish. Most of the time, kids prefer playing with adaptable and readily available materials rather than expensive or commercial toys . Children who are playing with Loose parts have higher chance to use creativity, imagination while developing skills and competence than the ones playing with the most modern plastic toys. Loose part brings freedom to learning process of a child and supports him in all developmental domains. The teacher’s role in learning process is positioned to encourage and support the ideas and studies of children. Parents, on the other hand, are involved to the process with a perspective of respect to the games and the environment of play. This approach can be applied indoors, open areas and in parks.
Nowadays, it is a widely acknowledged by all society that creative, successful decision maker adults are grown up in a school environment where their right to play, learn and develop naturally is respected.
In the light of this, having left their traditional understanding, it is important to try new educational approaches without hesitation in accordance with one of the most important goal of the EU, namely innovation and creativity, and they should be supported by the authorities. The following goals are based on the four components of education in order to apply Loose Parts.
GOAL ;CHILD
Let the kids to learn place and the materials by themselves.
Support the child’s decision making skills, creativity, imagination, problem solving and creative developmental skills by means of natural materials.
Make a change in learning perspective. Prove that it is possible to learn not only with structured materials but also with loose parts in all environment.
GOAL; TEACHER
Make a change in learning perspective. Prove that it is possible to learn not only with structured materials but also with loose parts in all environment
Let Teachers play a new role in learning process
A change in Educational Philosopy
GOAL; PARENTS
Get involved in observing and watching the child.
Observe, adapt ,support and watch this new approach.
GOAL; SCHOOL
In order to reach this goal, 28 team members and 68 teachers from 6 countries have worked actively in this project. The number of the students in partner countries are more than five hundred. With parents, the project will reach to a thousand people directly. The project will start with a workshop in which the subject and the context will be examined and improvements and studies will be planned to adopt Loose Part approach to child, parent, teacher, school and administrator by using scientific methods. In order to reach the goals PACD principles will be used to ensure that the activities progress without any mistake. In addition, leveraging the 80/20 principle of the PARETO approach, activities will be planed to solve the problems. Activities are based on targeting the four main target groups while mainly at work training is planed for the teachers besides the introduction training.
In addition to leaflets and brochures we will also use the impact of social media to introduce and share the Loose Part activities.
Many instructors, parents, and administrators will be reached
by means of Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, WordPress, Googleplus, LinkedIn, Myspace, Youtube, My yahoo, SlideShare, Daily Motion, Fotolog and Netlog .

Reaching the Lisbon Strategy and Europe 2020 goals strongly depends on the qualified workforce created by individuals who are creative decision makers that are raised in a high level of education in their early childhood.
Loose Part has the necessary philosophy to succeed in this. Besides the today’s curriculum which depends heavily on expensive materials and equipment, Loose Part provides the opportunity to be an affordable and convenient way to access education. As the feedbacks of the education takes longer to get, the correct strategy has to be determined as soon as possible.
LET THE CHILDREN PLAY !

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 131569 Eur

Project Coordinator

BILGE KAGAN ILKOKULU & Country: TR

Project Partners

• GRADINITA RITA GARGARITA BRANESTI, ILFOV
• Ukmerge darzelis -lopselis “Eglute”
• Agrupamento de Escolas de Vialonga
• Przedszkole Miejskie Nr 2 w Krasniku
• Kindergarten “Izvorche”