‘How to catch a moonbeam and pin it down’ – Moonbeams

Moonbeams is an early years programme which focusses on arts and creativity with, by and for babies and children aged five and under. First established in 2002 by colleagues at Birmingham City Council, and then funded and led by Arts Connect. CREC has now been handed the baton to take it forward. CREC has a long relationship with Moonbeams having been a key learning partner from the outset and will now curate and disseminate its work and hopefully develop it further.

Moonbeams’ philosophy is centred on a view that babies and children express themselves in ‘a hundred different ways’’ and that adults – parents/carers, educators, artists – have a key role in enabling children to develop their capabilities and potentials through arts and creativity. Young children’s creative learning is complex and evolving and just like a moonbeam can be challenging ‘‘to catch and pin it down’. Our Moonbeams programme helps by bringing people together to share ways of capturing, reflecting and understanding the complexities of creative learning through the arts. In doing so we can illuminate our own thinking and so create our own reflective ‘Moonbeams Moments’ that challenge and develop our practice.

Moonbeams provides a programme of action research, training and professional development, conferences and seminars, resources, interactive social networks including a Facebook community, and Podcasts to support creative and reflective practice in early years arts and creativity.