Air

The elemental of air is the Sylph. High intellect they reckon. I love air. Cant live without it actually. In education, I like it when it moves.

I spent over 5 years crewing for a hot air balloon mob in the Barossa.  We watched a lot of moving air. I learnt so much about wind. If we could see wind, it would look like a massive entwining universe of rivers, creeks and lakes. Tendrils of wind tunnels blow over the landscape like a vast nest of baby brown snakes searching for crickets. So Dynamic and unpredictable.

 Every day I’m out with kids we notice the wind. We notice how strong or fast it is, how things around us are affected by it, and what direction it is coming from. We watch rain clouds, shade clouds, or humongous storm clouds move to or from us, or we just notice the smells it carries. Often, the wind can drive the play. It can carry a sense of urgency about it, that fuels the kids energy. 

 At one site the sewage works stench was carried on the west wind, and a Vietnamese restaurant fragrance was carried on the south wind. We would be building and a kid would shout out “WEST WIND!!!”.

 

Every session is affected by wind.