The cash register
Recently we had an old electronic
cash register given to the centre which was still in great working condition.
The children were fascinated with it and were so keen to have a turn with it. I
asked them “what do we need to do to make the cash register work?” C. said “we
need to plug it into the power then we can turn the machine on and push the
buttons and make the money tray pop out”. So the group tried C’s theory out and
the cash register came to life.
Next a shop was set up as the group wanted to
be shop keepers.
The children made signs for their shop, found things around the centre to sell
and walked around the centre promoting the shop.
I liked how it encouraged some
of the quieter members of the group to be part of the experience, voice their
opinions and ask other children and staff if they wanted to buy something. Van Scoter,
Ellis & Railsback (2001) suggest that technology has a place in the early
childhood setting as it a great way to further develop language and literacy
through the opportunities and motivation it provides.
O.
told me that when she goes to the shops to buy food she sees the people using
the cash registers and she likes them and wanted to have a turn pushing the
buttons. Ministry of Education (1996) state that through playing in situations
like this, children develop awareness of experiences within and beyond the
early childhood setting.
I noticed some times that the cash
register would jam from the children pressing all of the buttons, however I
could see that they all tried to work together to fix the problem with the machine.
This links to the communication strand in Te Whariki where it helped the
children to try out their ideas and use their imaginations to solve problems
(Ministry of Education, 1996).
I loved to watch the children
playing with this cash register and I would often get asked if I would like to
buy something at the shop. I would give them my pretend money and we would work
out together how much change I needed. It was an excellent activity to further
develop mathematical skills. Friedman (2005) suggests that early childhood education
students should take advantage of the learning opportunities that come up each and
every day in children’s lives.
When I was a child, I always wanted
to play with a cash register as it looked like so much fun pushing the buttons
and watching the money tray come out. It was a fantastic experience for all
involved and the cash register is often brought out and set up for the children
to role play and continue their technology development. I could also see the
benefits of children further developing their fine motor and manipulative
skills with the small keys their fingers pushed. Ministry of Education (1996)
also agree that through exploration children can gain increasing motor and
manipulative control from this type of activity.
References
Friedman, S. (2005). Social studies in
action. Young Children on the Web, November
2001, 1-9.
Ministry of Education. (1996). Te
Whāriki, he whaariki mātauranga mo nga mokopuna o Aotearoa : Early childhood
curriculum. Wellington: Learning Media
Van Scoter J., Ellis, D.
& Railsback, J. (2001). Technology
in early childhood education: Finding the balance. Retrieved from http://www.netc.org/earlyconnections/byrequest.pdf
I liked your blog on the cash register as our preschool does not have one and it was interesting to read about the fun the children had with it. I liked how the cash register brought about children talking about their own experiences such as O with the cash register from the shops. This cash register offers a range of different technological experiences (Ministry of Education, 1999). Such as learning how to get the cash register to go, what buttons to push for the cash register to open? The cash register offers so many different learning areas such as technology, numbers and counting for mathematics and lots of dramatic play. I remember as a child playing shops but was never lucky enough to have a cash register. The cash register has changed over the years and helps the person using it to keep a telly and what change to give out. Smorti states technology is about helping people and solving problems and I feel that exactly what a cash register does. Where to next for the cash register what other learning experiences could you use this for?
ReplyDeleteI think having a cash register in an early childhood centre is a great idea as it links to so many different learning areas; role-playing, dramatic play, numeracy and literacy. It is highly important for children to be provided with resources that will encourage learning in these areas, especially literacy, as they will learn these skills more effectively in an environment that supports it (Hamer & Adams, 2003). I noticed as you were writing your blog that you were in the background for this activity, most notably the part where the tray was stuck, but the children were given the opportunity to fix this themselves. It seems as though you stayed back and watched as the children played with the cash register and worked out any issues. Is this part of your philosophy? It is something that I believe in very strongly; letting the children have a go and only stepping in when I feel I need to or if they want me to.
ReplyDeleteWhat a cool piece of technology to have in your centre for the children to play with! I really enjoyed reading C’s theory on how to make it work. Once again it was good to see how you let the children speak for themselves and see what ideas they come up with. By reading this blog I could see how this cash register extended the children’s imagination. It was cool how some children extended their thinking about the cash register and talked about the outside community. It showed how you and the children must have good relationships as they were getting you involved in the play. “The quality of the relationships and interactions between educators and children has an impact both on what children learn while in early childhood settings, and on their future interactions (Arthur, Beecher, Death, Dockett & Farmer, 2007, p. 324)” How could you extend this interest further? What about the children making props for their shop? I also remember wanting to have a go on the cash register at the supermarkets.
ReplyDeletei really enjoyed reading this blog and i find it exciting that you have been able to acquire a working cash register at your centre i think that it works makes it that much more exciting.through this activity that children are able to gain problem solving and thinking skills(ministry of education 1996). I think this will be a great way to extend on the children's current knowledge about the different technology around them. when i was little my dad got me a cash register to have in my tree house although it was bot in working order i had hours of fun with it and i think that it is going to be a popular thing within your centre.
ReplyDeleteI am very impressed by the information of this blog and I am glad that I had looked over this blog. Thank you so much for sharing such a great information
ReplyDeleteCash Registers
I am very impressed by the information of this blog and I am glad that I had looked over this blog. Thank you so much for sharing such a great information
ReplyDeleteCash Registers