In Taiwan, children typically begin learning Chinese characters in school at the age of seven through rote memorization of modern scripts. This traditional style of education expects students to repeat information without an understanding of the character’s origin. This paper proposes a method for children to create and recognize characters through sensory perception or intuition. In an experimental educational preschool, characters have been incorporated into the curriculum for four-year-old children through the 24 solar terms, created by ancient Chinese farmers to reflect changes in climate, farming, and daily routines. The purpose is not to teach children to read characters but to explore the imaginative relationship between characters and phenomena within the pictographic structures of oracle bone script dating back approximately three thousand years. The curriculum aims to experiment whether children who have not yet learned characters can recognize them using their innate associative and creative abilities. Teaching guidance begins with immersive classroom blackboard imagery, integrating natural seasons with relevant graphics and text. Instruction is complemented by contextual music and discussions on associations, in addition to gestures, lines, and writing to express the flow of relevant characters within the seasons. Sensory experiences expand children's pathways to learning characters, leading to the development of oracle bone script seasonal picture books. In the teaching process, educators observe children beginning to show curiosity about characters and writing, even creating their own unique characters, returning to the essence of characters—expression.

Authors:
Hsiao Chien Ku, Daohe Experimental Education Institute, Taiwan

About the Presenter(s)
Hsiao Chien Ku is an artist, currently the main teacher of K2 class of experimental school, Taiwan.

See this presentation on the full schedule – Friday Schedule

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