In Early Years Education there needs to be a reciprocal relationship between the theory and the practice, just as there is between the roots and the canopy.
As I was reading Robin Wall Kimmerer’s chapter “Maple Sugar Moon” in “Braiding Sweetgrass” (2013) I was reminded of this reciprocity.
In the roots of the tree is stored starch, waiting for spring and to be converted into sugars to be sent up to the buds to give them the energy they need to open. As soon as the leaves unfurl they no longer need the sugar laden sap as they can produce their own energy via photosynthesis. In fact they can create more than they need, and this is sent down to the roots to be stored.
The roots in the dark depths of the earth rely on the light sensors on the buds to let them know when it is time to set the whole process in action… too soon and there is the risk of frost damage, too late and they will miss the spring!
Research and theory should be informed by practice… what is the canopy communicating, what are the practitioners needing in order to blossom?
By reading and taking part in theory, practitioners can gain the sustenance needed to fully understand their role and to make informed decisions in their daily practice. Likewise this practice is collected, and analysed and converted into theory.
Researchers alienated from the practice will struggle to create relevent theory that can feed informed decision making - not only in the daily lives on the floor of the preschool, but also when it comes to policy making.
Researchers in a plantation forest, or “new forest” will tend to have a narrow theory lens - the roots only connecting with similar minds and not being able to access the diversity of a “real forest” or Old Growth Forest.
The wind in the canopy enables the branches and leaves to talk… just as exhaling creates voice. In Norrby Forest there are different areas that sound and feel very different depending on the trees that gather there.
It is almost like walking down a long corridor flanked by busy rooms that the sounds of the interior can be heard but the words cannot be made out…
Passing a room filled with children laughing, shouting and playing, a room filled with British Politicians harrassing each other, a room filled with people at worship… etc. The difference is noticeable…
and when passing a clearcut area it is like passing a cemetery - it is eerie and puts you at unease. It fills me with sorrow. Often there in the middle are one or two “Eternity Trees” (Evighetsträd) left because that ticks the right box, apparently, in good forestry management. The Tree is isolated, vulnerable, some clearly have not survived the trauma, their roots still connected to the now silenced.
The Eternity Trees reveal that there is knowledge of the importance of allowing trees to reach their full age potential, for the sake of diversity, but the manner that they are “saved” shows a lack of understanding of the diversity and companionship the Tree needs to thrive.
Practitioners in a canopy that can interact with other practitioners can learn from each other too, not quite in the same way as a well connected root system of theory, but all the same there is communication - the wind aiding pollen, seeds and pheromones that can warn other trees of insect attacks etc.
Social media has become like the wind for many practitioners… when once many preschools and schools where isolated from each other and practice depended on the individual preschool ecosystems of local teachers, parents and children and access to literature, suddenly social media carries the pollen and seeds of inspiration and possibility across the forest and beyond.
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