Play

What is play? (Slade, 1995) concludes ‘one of the greatest gifts of life is to know how to play.’ When I personally think back to my childhood, the happiest times I can recall involves playing with friendsA precise definition is quite difficult to determine .Play is an extremely difficult area which has many depths that contributes to a child’s healthy development (Sheridan, 2011). Space and equipment vary accordingly to budget but a capable practitioner is considered more essential to enable and enhance childrens play opportunities (Brain, 1989).

Play is universal and has been a major role in the classroom environment since Friedrich Froebel(1782-1852) introduced the early nursery 150 years ago (Saracho, 1998).Rudolf Steiner(1861-1925) along with Margaret Lowenfield’s writings in 1930’s contributed to today’s insights of play (Jenkinson, 2001).
 Play enhances, encourages and supports countless benefits such as applying sympathy/ empathy, everyday experiences, self esteem, feeling safe, thus, creativity able to emerge,active and interactive, making choices, promoting and provoking imagination/ communication, cooperation amongst peers, problem solving, social awareness/skills, investigating/exploring, teamwork, risk taking and moral matters, right and wrong.

Bruce (1996) claims that play is a vital tool to equip a child to cope with a grown up, fulfilling, healthy life. Play assists with the heartbreaks and joys of life, giving an awareness of control and happiness and feeling of involvment, being  valued.
Personally, when I think back to my childhood, the happiest times I can recall involves playing with friends and regulary obseve this with my own children.As much as my daughters enjoy day trips, holidays, watching tv and drawing etc..simply  playing with friends is the ultimate enjoyment.

Play is liberating and open to a child to join in at their own level, hence if the child feels comfortable within their environment then learning will take place influencing development.It displays an expertise in a productivity that comes instinctively to a child(Bennett and Henderson,2013). Children absorb and learn more in their first five years  than any other time.

Drawing on my experience of studying for NNEB the author, Mary Sheridan was a big influence towards researching children’s development, hence my reasons for choosing her stages of play, however there are many more such as Piaget, Parten, Dunn and Bruce.
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Active- physical with gross motor control.
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Exploratory and manipulative – 3 months+ starts with simple finger play progressing on to manipulating everyday objects with their hands such as such as rattles, dolls blocks. Fine and gross motor skills are constantly improving.
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Imitative – from 7-9 months, able to control body. Using simple language, copying parent/carers vocals. Displays a child’s observations of everyday life often offering a detailed commentary. Happily repeats when rewarded, such as applause.
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Constructive- 18-20 months , has retained previous motor and sensory skills but continuing to comprehend earlier stored information and making use to apply and further their knowledge
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Make-believe- starts just before the age of 2. Children put past experiences and perceptions into practise, expressing feelings, imitating and continually improving socially, emotionally and with communication.

Photograph: My daughter, Mabel, 2 years and 8 months.

Her favourite game whenever we are upstairs is "horsey adventures" with the prop that we use to pull down the attic door.

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Games with rules- 4 years+ Have  already attained a high level of the previous stages for the ability to comprehend the complicated  information involved in co-operative play including turn taking, fair play and maintaining accurate results.

Photograph: my eldest daughter, Letty, 7 years old with her friend, Hannah also 7 years
Both Letty and Hannah are engrossed in their version of 'Got to dance' making their game increasingly harder but having to make 2, 5,18, 20 moves to a song and then copying to see if they remember, keeping a score for each other. Whilst this is going on Mabel, 2 years and Olivia, 2 years 'join' in the game at their level of simply dancing and jumping to the music.

(Sheridan, 2011)

 

There are many useful play links relating to play but have found that the following, ‘Play Wales’ is a good example of supporting  children’s  play:

http://www.playwales.org.uk/eng/

TED TALKS - PLAY STUART BROWN

 

References

 
  

Bennett, V and Henderson, N.,(2013) Young children learning.The importance of play. In Ward, S (2013) 3rd Ed. A Students Guide to Education Studies Abington:Routledge

Brain, J and Martin, M, 1989. Child Care and Health for Nursery Nurses. Cheltenham:Stanley Thornes and Hulton

Bruce, T., 1996. Helping Young Children to Play. London: Hodder and Stoughton.

Jenkinson, S., 2001. The Genius of Play. Bath: Hawthorn Press early years seies.

Saracho, O.N.a.S.B., 1998. Multiple Perspectives on Play in Early Childhood Education. Albany: State of University of New York.

Sheridan, D.M., 2011. Play in Early Childhood From Birth To Six Years. Abington: Routledge.

 

Slade, P., 1995. Child Play its importance for human development. England: Jessica Kingsley.

Bennett, V and Henderson, N.,(2013) Young children learning.The importance of play. In Ward S (2013) 3rd Ed. A Students Guide to Education Studies Abington:Routledge