Play in Early Childhood Classrooms
The importance of Play
(2007, "Early years study 2," p. 45)
- Expands intelligence
- Is a testing ground of language and reasoning connecting to the challenges children face in school, such as literacy, math, and science concepts
- Stimulates the imagination, encouraging creative problem solving
- Helps develop confidence, self-esteem, a sense of strengths and weaknesses, and a positive attitude towards learning
- Is a significant factor in brain and muscle development
(2007, "Early years study 2," p. 45)
Types of Play
Passive Play
Passive play behaviours are:
Involved Play
Involved play behaviours are:
Pretend Play
There are several benefits of pretend play. Pretend play:
Cognitive Play
Piaget (1962), Smilansky (1968), Pellegrini (1982), and Smilansky and Sheftaya (1990) describe multiple stages of cognitive play.
Four stages of cognitive play:
Socio-dramatic play
Socio-dramatic play relates strongly to children's cognitive and social abilities. It is typical of children aged 3 to 5. It offers opportunities for children to:
Passive play behaviours are:
- uninvolved, where the child moves about but does not participate in the play
- onlooker, where the child may watch or speak with players but is not involved in the play
Involved Play
Involved play behaviours are:
- solitary, where the child plays alone
- parallel, where the child plays beside or near other players
- associative, where the child plays and talks with other players but the purpose of play may not be the same
- cooperative, where the play is shared and negotiated with sharing and turn taking
Pretend Play
There are several benefits of pretend play. Pretend play:
- encourages language and vocabulary growth (Pellegrini, 1984a)
- increases memory abilities (Pellegrini, 1984b)
- enhances reasoning and problem solving abilities, especially in situations when contradictory facts are considered (McCain, Mustard & Shankar, 2007)
- fosters flexible and inventive thinking (Isenberg & Jalongo, 1997; Peplar, 1986)
Cognitive Play
Piaget (1962), Smilansky (1968), Pellegrini (1982), and Smilansky and Sheftaya (1990) describe multiple stages of cognitive play.
Four stages of cognitive play:
- functional/practice play: repetitive muscle movements such as running, banging or stacking
- constructive play: use of blocks or materials to build something
- dramatic/pretend play: use of imagination and role play
- games with rules: accepts predetermined rules to play games
Socio-dramatic play
Socio-dramatic play relates strongly to children's cognitive and social abilities. It is typical of children aged 3 to 5. It offers opportunities for children to:
- develop abstract thinking (Piaget, 1962)
- refine their understandings about the world (McCain, Mustards & Shanker, 2007)
- solve problems in a safe context (Smilansky & Sheftaya, 1990)
- have a sense of control over what they are doing or experiencing (Piaget, 1962)
- learn how to relate to their peers in a positive way (Saracho & Spodek, 2003)