Positives of Play-Based Learning
Utilizing Play-Based Learning
Topics Covered
- What can students gain from play-based learning?
- What is the role of the teacher in play-based learning?
- How can parents support their students within play-based learning?
Skills and Knowledge Acquired
When utilizing play-based learning in the classroom, there is a variety of different skills and knowledge that can be acquired by students. No only can you utilize play-based learning to teach students about a specific topic, students can also gain essential skill sets that will be useful as they grow in their education. According to the University of New Hampshire play-based learning can help:
- Build executive function skills, content knowledge, and creative thinking.
- Enhance problem solving skills.
- Develop reading, vocabulary, and writing skills.
- Build counting, classifying, measuring, and pattern skills.
- Develop prediction and observation skills.
- Offer the ability to make predictions and develop observation skills.
- Opportunity for social emotional development.
- Opportunity for language development.
- Help students learn about themselves, as well as the world around them.
- Allow for children to apply what they learn to new situations and scenarios.
- Gain the ability to engage in role-play, as well as work through peer conflict.
- Build confidence, the ability to collaborate, and to express themselves.
- Produce the opportunity for students to engage in higher level thinking.
- Allow students to take risks in their learning and stay away from taking the "safe" path.
The Role of Teachers
Viewpoint and Understanding
According to an article posted by the Regional Education Laboratory Program the way that teachers view play in various ways. Caven stated "One study found that teachers who view play and learning as discrete and dichotomous activities predominantly provide children with opportunities to engage in "free play," while those who view play as a conduit to learning employ a much broader continuum of "guided play."7 Understanding the range of types of play can help educators, school leaders, and policymakers enhance the power of play in their classrooms." (Caven, 2022). In the article Caven emphasis knowing and understanding the various levels of play discussed in our first unit. Teachers need to be intentional about the form of play they choose to implement into their lesson plans to ensure that their students are getting the most out of their learning. It is also imperative to have your rituals, routines, and expectations understood in your classroom in order to get the intended outcomes of play-based learning. It is important that students know and understand what is expected of them prior to engaging in lessons. It is also important that students feel safe, welcomed, and valued in their learning environment in order to get the most out of any form of instruction but especially in play-based learning so that children feel comfortable taking risks in their learning. It is also so important for teachers to build relationships and get to know their students. Once teachers know and understand their students, they are able to tailor instruction to meet the needs of their specific students.
Environment
Teachers need to be able to create an effective learning environment for any and all lessons. This is no different for the implementation of play-based learning. In play-based learning, the teacher needs to be intentional about the materials laid out for students, the level of guidance given to students throughout specific lessons, and the environment set up for students to engage with. Teachers have some leniency with creating learning environments because there are various different ways in which teachers can facilitate play-based learning. There is multiple components of play-based learning such as the it's various forms, as well as the opportunity for independent exploration or collaborative learning. It is so important to consider the materials in which are available to students, the arrangement of the room, scheduling, the levels of guidance, etc. An effective environment for play-based learning "should be adaptable to accommodate different learning activities and promote various types of interactions. Flexible spaces that allow children to engage in individual or group work, quiet or active play, and different forms of expression should be included." (McArdle, 2023).
Room Arrangement and Materials
It is very important to consider the arrangement of your classroom when it comes to play-based learning. The environment in which students engage in play helps lay the groundwork for effective learning. It is important to ensure that your classroom has multiple areas for students to utilize for various ways of play. For example you could do a block/Lego area, a puppet show area, a reading nook, the kitchen area, etc., so that students are gaining diverse skill sets and are engaging in multiple forms of exploration. It is also important to ensure that the materials and areas of the room are accessible to all students and are meeting the needs of the specific group of students that are in that learning space. The learning environment needs to be developmentally appropriate, while also posing as a challenging for students. Centers can be a good tool to utilize with play-based learning as it ensures that students get to interact with various materials and concepts, and it provides them with the ability to move around and keep their engagement. As mentioned above, teachers need to be particular about the materials they choose to incorporate into their instruction because "Materials that encourage inquiry and exploration are ideal. Examples include water and sand tables with containers, experimenting and tinkering centers, or open-ended art materials." (ECLKC, 2023). The arrangement of the room should also be "visually appealing, welcoming, and stimulating." The use of natural materials, colors, and lighting can help to create an inspiring and peaceful environment for students to engage in play and learning. It is important to recognize that the environment of play-based learning is everchanging depending on the topics being covered in lessons, differing seasons, etc., students are able to learn in both the classroom and outside the classroom within nature. It is also imperative that when implementing play-based learning and considering the various aspects needed for implementation, that you are directly aligning your instruction with the grade level standards. It is also important to use play-based learning to guide further understanding among students on topics that are being taught or have been taught recently.
Intentional Questioning
- Knowledge Questions
- "Knowledge Questions are contestable questions about knowledge itself. Knowledge Questions are crafted with intention to be open, general and contentious. They are succinct, grammatical and use precise concepts and vocabulary. They provoke discursive evaluation rather than any single, definitive response." (Brown). There are different levels to knowledge questioning the first order knowledge is about the world directly and the second order knowledge is how we learn about the world. A great example I came across was "Who caused the First World War? is a first order knowledge question. Why do historians have different opinions on who caused the First World War? would be second order knowledge." (TOK, 2023). It is important to understand what knowledge questions are in order to implement them into your classroom effectively. Knowledge questions help students to explore the content that has been presented to them in their own way. It helps them to make connections and explore distinctions and boundaries between subject areas. Knowledge questions help teach students about the real world and help them to make their own real world connections. Knowledge questions are open ended and should be directly related to the focus subject being taught, and needs to be explicitly about knowledge. A lot of the questions will start with how do we know or end with how do you know? This help ensure students are reflecting on their thought processes and are understanding how they came up with their answer.
- Comprehension Questions
- Comprehension questions as all questions used in intentional questioning, is used to check students' understanding of a concept. Comprehension questions are most often talked about in relation to ELA or reading. Usually comprehension questions are mentioned relating to a story or text. However, comprehension goes past just reading, you can use comprehension questions throughout all content areas covered in reading and stories. You can use comprehension questions after/during read alouds, puppet shows, group reading, independent reading, etc. Some ways you can include comprehension questions into your play-based learning lesson plans are summarizing, sequencing, inferencing, comparing and contrasting, drawing conclusions, self-questioning, problem-solving, relating background knowledge (Colorín Colorado, 2018).
- Application Questions
- Application questions are questions that help students relate the content being taught to them to the real world. Using application questions throughout lessons ensures that students are thinking about how the content, information, and their experiences throughout engaging in play-based learning relates to the real world and their everyday lives. "Application questions ask students to think about they would apply their newly acquired knowledge in real-world situations and scenarios." (Sandling, 2022). You can ask application questions at anytime throughout the lesson. At the beginning of the lesson it can be beneficial to use application questions as an introduction to the lesson. You can also use application questions at the beginning of a lesson as a recap of the lesson prior. Otherwise, it can be beneficial to ask application questions throughout the lesson and at the end of the lesson as a way to reflect on what has been learned and then to build upon that further by relating what has been learned to the world and everyday life. Some benefits of utilizing application questions according to Herrington's nine principles of authentic learning are; that it provides an authentic context that reflects the way the knowledge will be used in real life, provides authentic tasks and activities, provides access to expert performances, provides multiple roles and perspectives, supports collaborative construction of knowledge, promotes reflection to enable abstractions to be formed, promotes articulation to enable tacit knowledge to be made explicit, provides coaching and scaffolding, and provides for authentic assessment of learning (Herrington et al., 2017).
- Analysis Questions
- Analysis questions typically look into the various relationships between the multiple lessons covered throughout play-based learning. "Good analytical questions have the potential to highlight relationships between different sources or phenomena: patterns, connections, contradictions, dilemmas, and problems. " (Walk,2023), meaning that analysis questions can help connect multiple lessons together and shed light on how they build off each other. Typically analysis questions will compare and contrast things/examine similarities and differences. "An analysis question is one that asks a student to break down something into its component parts. To analyze requires students to identify reasons, causes, or motives and reach conclusions or generalizations." (TVS, 2007). Some examples of analysis questions that can be used in a play-based learning setting would be; why is this important?, in what ways are these similar/different?, how does this work?, is there anything you would change?, what do you think? , etc. This is important in relation to play-based learning because it is important to let students know the link between activities and lessons so they can see how they all come together to strengthen their overall understanding of a concept.
- Evaluation Questions
- Evaluation questions help show teachers how effective the lesson was. Evaluation questions can show what students know at the end of lessons and whether or not they understand the content being taught. Evaluation questions using come at the end of lessons as a way of evaluating what areas of the lesson went well, what areas may need to be covered again, and different modifications that could be made in the future to improve the effectiveness of the lesson. Evaluative questioning can look like asking students to show their learning in relation to the real world. Some examples of evaluative questions are what other ideas do you have to add?, would you make any changes, if so what would they be?, what else might you be able to do/use in this center, station, story, etc.?, what are you planning to do next?, etc.. Evaluation questions seem to be more for teachers, however, students benefit from more reflection at the end of lessons and this is a great opportunity for the students to further build their knowledge by thinking about changes they might make, things they might add, how they might use their knowledge and understanding of content for the future, etc., this will only deepen their understanding of the content and lead to the highest levels of understanding.
The Role of Parents
Parents can play a very important role in play-based learning as well. If you think about it students engage in the most play at home. It is beneficial to educate parents on the topic of play-based learning. There are various ways in which you can help push parents in the right direction in implementing intentional play-based learning into their everyday lives at home. A few simple ways to educate and encourage parents would be with news letters, regular letters, infographics, word of mouth, etc.. Including parents in the understanding of play-based learning can help avoid negative responses to the idea of students "playing" in school more than the traditional sitting at their desks while the teacher teaches approach. It can also help strengthen the link between home and school and promote a united force between parents and the teachers. It also provides a great opportunity to for parents to play an active role in their child's learning and development. Parents can help promote play-based learning through a variety of different ways, costumes, toys, board games, etc., "There’s no limit to creativity, most inventions being enjoyed today are as a result of someone’s imagination. Inspire your children to grow in a happy and healthy way by reinventing themselves", (PBC, 2019).