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As time goes on, things change. Some of these changes are positive, while others can be seen as negative. This is true for most things, including childhood play. It has been proven that children need play time for developmental purposes. Play promotes all types of learning. It teaches kids how to function in social systems, interact with others, solve problems, and deal with emotions. Playtime is not just for fun! Playtime in schools used to be more prominent. Schools now focus on the paper aspect, children are taught to test. Educators need to see the flaws in our current system. Play based learning is best for young kids. It is engaging as well as beneficial for the student. Teaching children to test may make the school look good, but it
Many theorists have tried to define play as a concept, however, no two agree on a set definition. Their backgrounds and induvial lifestyles influence the way they see the importance of play. Reed and Brown also believe that there isn’t an agreed definition of play because is something that is felt rather than done (Reed & Brown, 2000 cited in Brock, Dodd’s, Jarvis & Olusoga, 2009). In spite of this, it is clear that most theorists uphold the ethos that play is imperative to a child’s learning and development. There is a wide range of different studies and theories which helps us develop our own perception of what play is. In my personal experience I have found play to be a way of expressive our emotions, exploring and learning new things, thus
Exploring How Psychologists Study the Role of Play in Child Development Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, New Edition, 1995 defines “play” as: “[Children] when children play, they do things that they enjoy, often together or with toys. ” Play is one of the most powerful vehicles children have for trying out and mastering new social skills, concepts and experiences. Psychologists, such as Faulkner (1995), present evidence that play is seen as a mean of developing social skills and interpersonal relationships with others. The first section of the essay will present the different approaches psychologists use in the quest to learn about the role of children’s play and their related issues. This section will briefly define the nature of play and the different types of play that influence social development.
An Article by Dr. Leong and Dr. Bodrova (2016) stated that play is beneficial to children’s learning especially when it reaches a certain degree of complexity. When they engage in play activities most of their early years, they learn to delay gratification and to prioritize their goals and actions. They also learn to consider the perspectives and needs of other people and to represent things significantly to regulate their behavior and actions in a cautious, intentional way.
Effective ply based learning environment consist of pleasurable-play. An enjoyable and pleasurable activity. Play sometimes includes frustrations, challenges and fear, however enjoyable is a key feature. Active-play requires actions, either physical, verbal or mental engagement with materials, people, ideas or the environment. For children with social, emotional or behaviour problems, some play-based interventions have been developed. These programmes explicitly aim to improve social and cognitive skills by teaching children how to
All children play and it is something that most children do because they are having fun, but without realising children are developing and learning skills when they are engaged in play. Play helps stimulate the mind as it is practical and gives children the chance to explore and experience new situations. It can also ensure that children get to think by themselves and be spontaneous as they control their own play. Children get the chance to be creative and imaginative which develops independence for children. Play is vital for child development and helps children develop five main areas of development:
Like all young children, a child enjoys the pleasure of play. However, many people have different views on play and what it is used for. First of all, many parents and teachers think that play is beneficial to young children in many ways. It teaches them basic skills they need to learn in life such as cooking or housekeeping. This type of role play helps exercise their creativity and serves as a “rehearsal for adult life” (Lester and Russell). It provides them with the skills needed for them to grow as independent adults. Say, a child is pretending to run a grocery store. Another child comes by the store and picks up an empty carton of milk. Children often experiment with numbers and prices and manipulate them to either create a sense of being “grown up” or to cause a reaction. With this being said, the child running the store charges
...ctive. Play is an essential learning tool and one that must not be ignored within the classroom. It is a catalyst to help children develop socially, emotionally, physically and cognitively. It is not only an important part of a child’s development as a pupil but also a child’s development as an individual.
What is play? Play is defined as engaging in activates for enjoyment & recreation rather than a serious practical purpose. Playing is a disorganized voluntary spontaneous activity, which may include objects, one’s body, symbol usage, and relationships. Play is flexible, individualize, grouped, motivating, self-directed, open-ended, or self-directed. (Smith, 2013) (Saskatchewan Ministry of Education, 2010)
...performance will benefit them later in life. Play environments give children many and varied life experiences. Active involvements and interactions with peers and adults give young children opportunity to learn and communicate more. Play successfully enhances young children’s language development in productive way. It lays down the foundation for them to learn reading and writing in school. Preschoolers are able to become well-rounded learners. Therefore, they can easily adapt to new world and be well prepared higher learning.
However, despite the unquestionable link to a brighter future for the children who engage in it, less and less time is being allotted for play in the classrooms. As standards for what children are expected to know at younger and younger ages continues to rise along with the demand for standardized testing from the state, time for play is being sacrificed. Adults are choosing to get rid of time for unstructured play and recess to make time for this new testing interfering with the time allotted for children to learn independently through play. Cutting play and recess is a mistake, and here is why: “recess gives students time for social interactions: for students must be able to initiate, negotiate, cooperate, share, and build relationships with one another--skills that are highly valued in the adult world but that often are quite different from work or play under adult supervision and control” (Chang). Those skills learned through play, are often not the sole purpose of a classroom lesson and could potentially be the only place they learn those needed skills. Play is an affective measurement in the classroom as well as outside of the classroom and children can learn so much from it if only given the chance
The book, Exploring Your role in Early Childhood Education, defines play as, “any activity that is freely chosen, meaningful, active, enjoyable, and open-ended.”(pg. 140) Play has many positive characteristics such as freedom to explore and create. Suppose when a child enters his/her classroom and has various self-selection activities available, the child can become engaged in something of interest specifically to that individual child. The book also states, “Play is active and is natural process of mentally and actively doing something.”(pg. 140) When children can act out or explore experiences they are having hands on experience and learning by actually doing. Without knowing it, children are practicing body movements as well as mental processing though acting imaginary games out.
Play Education is the most important activity in the lives of children. Play is the foundation of learning for young children. For children play, is how they begin to understand and process their world? The best part for children is that play is fun and this keeps them always wanting more because they enjoy participating in it. Play education is for children up until age 12. And different ages are broken down into groups. Giving the child time and some few basic toys can provide them with a variety of valuable learning opportunities. It is important to let children explore and learn how to play, if the child can’t seem to figure it out then a person can guide them. Play Education is simple and very effective; this is an individual education and it helps gaining the skills to understand the world around them better.
...nion, play will help children to interact with peers, taking turns, sharing, and sharing ideas. Children will learn leadership roles, directing skills, and also as a follower. Play provides opportunities for reading, mathematics, and writing, as a result helps the children to explore and experiment the environment using their senses. Consequently, play helps children to develop special interest for hobbies or occupation in which they carry right through adulthood. Play gets rid of build up energy in children. They learn to play in small and large groups, which cause play to reinforce development and it also reflects development. Also, play is a good vehicle for children with special needs; it helps children to model by what others do. Play provides independence, success, and strengths, which helps children to develop friendship. Finally, play is healthy; it is fun!
Before diving into my research, I reflected on the knowledge I already knew regarding play and play based learning. From experience, I know that play is an enjoyable activity for children, and even some adults. I know that there are different ways one can play. For example, playing with others is known as cooperative play and playing alone is considered solitary play. There are different types of play. For example, there is dress up or pretend games, which is considered dramatic, play and there is playing with building blocks which is constructive play. After my reflection I realized that I was more knowledgeable on the action of playing rather then the benefits of it.
It is important that schools use a play based curriculum that display’s students interest because children develop different skills at different times. There are two different ways to interpret the term “play” that can become conflicting. Some see it as something that is fun and the only thing that children want to do. However, although it is fun, it is also a way in which children learn. When children participate in play they are engaging in collaboration, communication, content, creativity, critical thinking, and confidence. This can also be described as “the Six Cs” (Gillespie, 2017). These are skills that young children will need in adulthood and they are developing them through play. When students are engaging in play, they are developing physical, mental, cognitive, language, and motor skills. Playing allows students to use their imagination and creativity. Since play requires hands-on involvement, children are also developing social skills. By participating in play, children can connect real-life situations. For example, dramatic play centers can allow children to dress up as members of a community such as a police officer. The student then takes on the role of that person based on real life situations. Engaging in play within a classroom allows children to develop a longer attention span. Play allows students the chance to self-discover and promote