Why is Play important?
"Through play, children learn a wide range of concepts and skills that contribute to their emotional, social, physical, aesthetic, and cognitive development." (Harcourt & Wortzman, 2012)
Play is considered key to a child's development and is recognized by the United Nations as a right of children.
"Play is a child's work" - Piaget
The importance of Play
(2007, "Early years study 2," p. 45)
"Play is a child's work" - Piaget
The importance of Play
- Expands intelligence
- Is a testing ground of language and reasoning connecting to the challenges children face in school, such as literacy, math, and science concepts
- Stimulates the imagination, encouraging creative problem solving
- Helps develop confidence, self-esteem, a sense of strengths and weaknesses, and a positive attitude towards learning
- Is a significant factor in brain and muscle development
(2007, "Early years study 2," p. 45)
“You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation” – Plato
Responding to Play in the Classroom
The way that teachers and other adults respond to children's play is important. When adults respond to children’s play by asking open ended, inquiry-based questions and offering supportive prompts, this leads children to make powerful connections while promoting an emergent curriculum. (Harcourt & Wortzman, 2012)
Skillful questioning can: raise awareness, focus attention, engage a child testing an idea further, invite reflection, analysis, or predictions, extend or challenge children, assess thinking, learning, development, level of interest and help bridge children's explorations and play to intentional activity. (Harcourt & Wortzman, 2012)
The way that teachers and other adults respond to children's play is important. When adults respond to children’s play by asking open ended, inquiry-based questions and offering supportive prompts, this leads children to make powerful connections while promoting an emergent curriculum. (Harcourt & Wortzman, 2012)
Skillful questioning can: raise awareness, focus attention, engage a child testing an idea further, invite reflection, analysis, or predictions, extend or challenge children, assess thinking, learning, development, level of interest and help bridge children's explorations and play to intentional activity. (Harcourt & Wortzman, 2012)
The Classroom Play Environment
The learning environment plays a significant role in supporting children's social, emotional, artistic, physical and cognitive development. Teachers need to create rich, inviting environments for their students which often requires significant time and planning. An environment with varied learning areas and interesting materials invites and supports children to explore, investigate and wonder. (Harcourt & Wortzman, 2012)
Learning areas are the physical areas that children visit, including both indoor and outdoor areas. These areas inspire learning, promote independence and encourage participation and collaboration.
The learning environment plays a significant role in supporting children's social, emotional, artistic, physical and cognitive development. Teachers need to create rich, inviting environments for their students which often requires significant time and planning. An environment with varied learning areas and interesting materials invites and supports children to explore, investigate and wonder. (Harcourt & Wortzman, 2012)
Learning areas are the physical areas that children visit, including both indoor and outdoor areas. These areas inspire learning, promote independence and encourage participation and collaboration.
Scaffolding Play
It is becoming increasingly clear that without adult support, the play of many children is destined to never reach its full potential. (Leong & Bodrova, 2012) Teaching children how to play must be equally as intentional as teaching literacy or math is. Vygotsky (1977) believes that make believe play reaches its highest level of development in the preschool and kindergarten years. This is why it is important to provide children with ample opportunities to engage in playful interactions during these years.
Leong and Bodrova (2012) have provided an acronym, PRoPELS which stands for the most critical elements of children's play that can be assessed and scaffolded by adults.
PRoPELS
Plan
The ability for children to think about play prior to playing
Roles
The roles that children play, including the actions, language and emotional expressions that are associated with a particular role
Props
The objects (real, symbolic or imaginary) that children use within their play
Extended (time frame)
Play that either lasts for extended periods of time or is extended over several play sessions and many days
Language
What children say in order to create a scenario or to coordinate the actions of different players as well as the speech associated with a particular role
Scenario
What children act out, including the sequence of scripts and the interactions between roles
It is becoming increasingly clear that without adult support, the play of many children is destined to never reach its full potential. (Leong & Bodrova, 2012) Teaching children how to play must be equally as intentional as teaching literacy or math is. Vygotsky (1977) believes that make believe play reaches its highest level of development in the preschool and kindergarten years. This is why it is important to provide children with ample opportunities to engage in playful interactions during these years.
Leong and Bodrova (2012) have provided an acronym, PRoPELS which stands for the most critical elements of children's play that can be assessed and scaffolded by adults.
PRoPELS
Plan
The ability for children to think about play prior to playing
Roles
The roles that children play, including the actions, language and emotional expressions that are associated with a particular role
Props
The objects (real, symbolic or imaginary) that children use within their play
Extended (time frame)
Play that either lasts for extended periods of time or is extended over several play sessions and many days
Language
What children say in order to create a scenario or to coordinate the actions of different players as well as the speech associated with a particular role
Scenario
What children act out, including the sequence of scripts and the interactions between roles
Using PRoPELS can allow teachers to assess the maturity of the children's play. Children move through five stages in make-believe play.
Five Stages in a Child's Make- Believe Play
1. First Scripts
2. Roles in Action
3. Roles with Rules and Beginning Scenarios
4. Mature Roles, Planned Scenarios and Symbolic Props
5. Dramatization, Multiple Themes, Multiple Roles, and Director's Play
Five Stages in a Child's Make- Believe Play
1. First Scripts
2. Roles in Action
3. Roles with Rules and Beginning Scenarios
4. Mature Roles, Planned Scenarios and Symbolic Props
5. Dramatization, Multiple Themes, Multiple Roles, and Director's Play
Mature make-believe play is an important and unique context, that provides opportunities to learn not afforded by other classroom activities. Play should be preserved and nurtured as it provides beneficial context for children's development.