From my 1st grader's Special Ed teacher
Marshall Memo #385 Does Play Belong in Early-Childhood Classrooms?
In this article in The Chronicle Review, Tom Bartlett attacks what he believes is a misguided trend toward emphasizing basic skills and virtually eliminating play in early childhood classrooms. Lev Vygotsky is the guru of those who believe play is
developmentally essential. He believes that play, especially pretend play, is an essential part of childhood – something that makes children “stand a head taller” than they would be without it.
Researchers say that three things develop when young children play:
• Abstract thinking – When children ride a broomstick as a pretend horse, they are separating the object from what it symbolizes – an act of abstraction that represents a huge mental leap forward. This happens frequently when children play.
• Vocabulary – When children pretend, they often use grown-up words. If they’re playing doctor, they might talk about an injection and a thermometer. If they’re pretending to be TSA inspectors, they might tell another child that she’s carrying a bottle larger than the permitted three ounces.
• Executive function – A study found that children in play-based early childhood classrooms seem to have better cognitive flexibility, self-control, and working memory – attributes of “executive function” that have been linked to higher academic achievement.
If this research is accurate, we may be raising a generation of children with less selfcontrol, shorter attention spans, and poorer memory skills, says Bartlett. How free should play be? Kathy Hirsch-Pasek, believes in a middle ground. She’s
not enamored of commercial products that do all the work for children, but she thinks completely unstructured play has problems as well. Hirsh-Pasek conducted a study in which guided play – adults providing materials and making suggestions – produced the most imaginative and sophisticated language and the most creative play. In addition, Bartlett cites evidence that guided play (as opposed to free play) produces learning gains.
“The Case for Play: How a Handful of Researchers Are Trying to Save Childhood” by Tom Bartlett in The
Chronicle Review, Feb. 25, 2011 (Vol. LVII, #25, p. BB6-B9)
And I've not read this whole online article, but more for your naptime reading pleasure....http://www.thinkfun.com/content/case...save-childhood
My state regs says that I have a curriculum that includes 30 mins of science a day for each age group. Yep, a 6 week old baby has to have a 30 min science lesson daily. I have a curriculum listed, but given the age of my kids, I practice learn through play. In another thread I discussed a lack of basic social and living skills I see in so many kids. My personal opinion, these are so much more important to teach and learn than a curriculum focused on numbers/colors/ABCs in the population I serve.
Discuss
Marshall Memo #385 Does Play Belong in Early-Childhood Classrooms?
In this article in The Chronicle Review, Tom Bartlett attacks what he believes is a misguided trend toward emphasizing basic skills and virtually eliminating play in early childhood classrooms. Lev Vygotsky is the guru of those who believe play is
developmentally essential. He believes that play, especially pretend play, is an essential part of childhood – something that makes children “stand a head taller” than they would be without it.
Researchers say that three things develop when young children play:
• Abstract thinking – When children ride a broomstick as a pretend horse, they are separating the object from what it symbolizes – an act of abstraction that represents a huge mental leap forward. This happens frequently when children play.
• Vocabulary – When children pretend, they often use grown-up words. If they’re playing doctor, they might talk about an injection and a thermometer. If they’re pretending to be TSA inspectors, they might tell another child that she’s carrying a bottle larger than the permitted three ounces.
• Executive function – A study found that children in play-based early childhood classrooms seem to have better cognitive flexibility, self-control, and working memory – attributes of “executive function” that have been linked to higher academic achievement.
If this research is accurate, we may be raising a generation of children with less selfcontrol, shorter attention spans, and poorer memory skills, says Bartlett. How free should play be? Kathy Hirsch-Pasek, believes in a middle ground. She’s
not enamored of commercial products that do all the work for children, but she thinks completely unstructured play has problems as well. Hirsh-Pasek conducted a study in which guided play – adults providing materials and making suggestions – produced the most imaginative and sophisticated language and the most creative play. In addition, Bartlett cites evidence that guided play (as opposed to free play) produces learning gains.
“The Case for Play: How a Handful of Researchers Are Trying to Save Childhood” by Tom Bartlett in The
Chronicle Review, Feb. 25, 2011 (Vol. LVII, #25, p. BB6-B9)
And I've not read this whole online article, but more for your naptime reading pleasure....http://www.thinkfun.com/content/case...save-childhood
My state regs says that I have a curriculum that includes 30 mins of science a day for each age group. Yep, a 6 week old baby has to have a 30 min science lesson daily. I have a curriculum listed, but given the age of my kids, I practice learn through play. In another thread I discussed a lack of basic social and living skills I see in so many kids. My personal opinion, these are so much more important to teach and learn than a curriculum focused on numbers/colors/ABCs in the population I serve.
Discuss
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