The value of learning through play is not as obvious to many parents as it is to professionals. Mary Evans tells how you can help them appreciate this important concept
Parents naturally want the best start for their children. But in today's competitive world of league tables and assessments they can all too easily think that the most positive first step on life's ladder of learning is to push their toddlers into a formalised programme of education, rather than letting them progress through play.
Childcare professionals from all sectors and settings often find that when practising the philosophy of learning through play, they first have to teach the parents. As Ann Elliott, head of Horton Grange First School in Blythe, Northumberland, and vice-chair of the National Association of Head Teachers Early Years Committee, says, 'I had one mother say, "I don't want my son dressing up. He should be at his desk doing sums". I had to explain how important dressing up was for them.'
Good communication between staff and parents is crucial to getting the message across, according to Lynne Crussell, the proprietor of the Abacus Day Nursery in Cambridge. She is organising a wine and cheese evening for parents at which she will discuss learning and demonstrate how the nursery is moving towards the early learning goals in the Foundation Stage through play.
Lynne says, 'Our parents do seem to understand our ethos, but if a new parent comes to look round and asks, "What reading system do you use?" we say that we don't have one.
'In fairness to the parents, where do they get their education on childcare from? If I hadn't gone into childcare I wouldn't know half of what I do know about child development.'
Through play the staff cover pre-reading and pre-writing. A recent activity where the children "wrote" their names on labels will be included in a video that Lynne is filming for the parents' evening. 'The children have each been given a drawer for their treasures. We gave them their names to copy on to labels and they just did a scribble or a zigzag. But they can read it. The marks may just look like a blob or a squiggle to us, but if I say, "Let's put this away in your treasure drawer", they know which is their drawer and say, "Look my name is on it".'
Diane Peden, director of the chain of Red Apple Nursery Schools in Scotland, says, 'We do have some parents who want to see their child achieve and want to see evidence of this achievement.' The chain has responded to this by devising a system for explaining to parents what the staff and children are doing.
The five-day week is divided into ten sessions and the noticeboard for the week contains ten squares. Each square will show what the activities are for that session and to which of the early learning goals they are linked. For example, if the activity concerns spring flowers, it will involve knowledge and understanding of the world, maths (through counting the petals), and basic science. In this way the staff can illustrate to the parents how their children are developing and learning through play.
Opposite is a cut-out-and-photocopy guide on how children learn through play, with suggested play activities. Designed for practitioners to hand out to parents, the guide is by early years consultant Marian Whitehead.
A parent's guide to learning through play
Babies, toddlers and pre-schoolers are great communicators, thinkers and explorers. We don't teach them these complex skills - they learn them as they play. Consistent, loving care and lots of opportunities for play are the best preparation for school.
The ideas that follow are listed for babies, toddlers and pre-schoolers, but these are very flexible age groups and the ideas can be 'mixed and matched' for any of the years from nought to seven.
Babies
Babies enjoy listening, watching, touching and rhythmic movement. They respond to human voices and faces, moving leaves and mobiles, textures and sounds. They are learning about language, sounds, rhythms, and expressions on familiar faces; how things feel; what objects and materials do; how to expect things to happen again; what they can do with their own bodies.
Play activities
- Bath time - splashing and kicking; sponges and flannels to squeeze and drip; plastic cups, bottles and small sieves to fill and pour; plastic bath books. Water is fascinating to babies, but NEVER LEAVE YOUNG CHILDREN ALONE IN A BATH.
- Treasure baskets - a basket of safe objects to touch and examine, such as wooden and metal spoons, woolly and silky fabrics, shells, balls, containers and lids to provide examples of shape, texture, movement and weight. DO NOT LEAVE A BABY ALONE WITH A TREASURE BASKET.
- Peep-boo - hide your face with your hands, place a corner of a blanket over baby's face, look around the edge of a door, make 'peep-boo' part of dressing and undressing routines.
- Share some books - from their second month babies can enjoy a quiet playtime with a picture book. Look for small books with bold pictures and captions and talk about them. Save catalogues and magazines to look through with baby.
Remember: Babies are natural learners in ordinary homes with caring adults.
Toddlers
Toddlers enjoy walking, running, jumping, hiding and climbing in safe spaces. They are great chatterers, singers and dancers, and start to talk to favourite toys.
They are learning how to manage
and control their own bodies; how to manipulate objects skilfully; how to talk about a wider range of ideas and events; how to create imaginary worlds.
Play activities
- Dens, hiding places and tents - inside and outside, using blankets, cupboards, tables, bushes, or big boxes. These help toddlers to think imaginatively and explore ideas of space.
- Parks - use the space for running; enjoy swings, slides and see-saws; walk and talk about everything you see. Activities, talking and thinking go hand-in-hand.
- Handling objects - banging saucepans and lids, wrapping up toys in paper, lining up toys, packing them in baskets, blowing bubbles. Mathematical ideas of shape, size, order and area begin with these activities.
- Books and print: board books and 'lift the flap' books, catalogues and magazines.
Remember: Toddlers learn by being active, energetic and 'hands on'.
Pre-schoolers
Pre-schoolers enjoy getting to know the real world; creating imaginary worlds; pretending to be other people; playing with other children; sorting and organising ideas and objects.
They learn about how the world works; what people do; what it feels like to be someone else; how to co-operate with others; how to express their ideas and feelings in words, pictures and play.
Play activities
- Real activities - gardening, cooking, shopping, tidying and cleaning. Pre-schoolers gain self-esteem, knowledge and pleasure from doing these with adults.
- Pretend games - pretend to be someone else, such as mum, doctor, cat.
- Drawing and crafts - making marks in sand, mud or dough; colouring, sticking, 'writing' on shopping lists and family letters, modelling, doing puzzles, playing card games. Such activities contain the roots of literacy, mathematics and creative thinking.
- Picture books - stories of people, problems and happy endings; nursery rhymes and fun alphabets (see Dr Seuss, Shirley Hughes, Satoshi Kitamura, Posy Simmonds).
