For children, play time is learning time

by Tammy Rackliffe

Asadults, we have memories of childhood play: times when we would create imaginative adventures, explore new things and pursue individual interests, times when spontaneous play would provide hours of entertainment and enjoyment. Through these experiences, we gained new skills, discovered talents we didn’t know we had, formed friend- ships and learned to navigate the ups and downs of the world around us.

Children learn best when they are mentally active, engaged, socially interactive and building meaningful connections to life. Regular physical activity has multiple benefits for the physical, mental and cognitive health of children.

Within a school setting, play-based learning is critical.

It is the cornerstone of learning and builds the foundation for conceptual learning. Play-based learning falls into two main categories: guided play and free play.

Guided play

Guided play is derived when children explore within an environment guided by adults. Adults choose materials that will encourage exploration and open-ended discussions. The key to exploration and discussion is twofold.

First, adults must follow the lead of the children as they play so that children have the autonomy to play freely. Second, they must guide discussions, which progress toward the intended learning goals. This increases student knowledge through opportunities to receive immediate and meaningful adult feedback.

Behavior researchers have identified positive correlations between children’s play and development of skills within oral language acquisition, executive functioning, mathematical skills, scientific thinking and social/ emotional development.

Learning labs at many schools provide an optimal time for skill development.

“Learning labs give students a time to be creative and flexible with their thinking,” said Stacy Sosniecki, firstgrade teacher at Duluth Edison Charter School. “Student language development has increased significantly through the integration of learning labs, whether they are creating spaceships to fly or performing a play with puppets.”

Free play or recess

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines recess as “regularly scheduled periods within the school day for unstructured physical activity and play.” Most remember recess as an integral part of the school day. However, the demise of recess is an issue of great concern for our children. In a national educational environment that many feel is too focused on testing, it is important not to lose site of the value of recess, free play, brain breaks and other movement opportunities for children. The benefits of cognitive interruptions allow the brain a break so that it can “regroup.” Brain research shows a relationship between physical activity and the development of brain connections. Through practice and role-playing of social skills, recess promotes the

Continued on page 34 social-emotional development of children. Children are able to bring skills taught in the classroom onto the playground for practice and exploration. They are able to learn how to resolve conflicts, exercise leadership skills, learn negotiation skills, develop positive communication skills and coping skills.

Implementation of multiple opportunities for recess is a vital component to primary grades programming.

“As kindergarten teachers, we clearly see the students attention span and ability to focus increase after recess,” teacher Jill Ellison said. “Students are engaged in their learning. We are able to coach students through problem-solving during play, and students are able to carry this into the classroom. During learning labs, there are limited problems that need to be solved because they have an understanding of how to solve problems on their own.”

Physical activity throughout the school day has a positive effect on student performance and behavior management within the classroom. The same is true for children at home. One of the most important gifts we can give our children is time to play, alone and with others. Encourage free play where children use their imagination to build child. When you play with your child, you will have the opportunity to enter into a child’s imaginative world. Playworks, an advocate for the integration of play in all schools, identifies five benefits of recess. First, play breaks are a necessary part of life for adults and kids. Second, classroom performance improves after such breaks.

Third, recess fosters social development as children develop social skills and conflict resolution strategies.

Fourth, daily opportunities for physical activity help fight against childhood obesity.

Finally, play enhances brain development. D forts with blankets, play neighborhood games or create projects utilizing recycled materials. Think before you buy the latest and greatest toy. Children can learn to improvise with an empty box to create a rocket and blast off into space. Take time and play with your