PLAY-BASED

LEARNING
Kaitlin Everett, Kristin Tonymon, Erica Pierce

THE IMPORTANCE OF
PLAY
Our Written Statement:
The most important way that children learn is through play. It is through
play that children learn about the social, physical, emotional and
cognitive worlds around them. Play is learning at its best.

Russian psychologist Lev

Vygotsky (1929) wrote:
It seems to me that from the
point of view of development,
play is not the predominant
form of activity, but is, in a
certain sense, the leading
source of development in
preschool years
Isaac Newton once wrote:
I do not know what I may
appear to the world; but to
myself I seem to have been
only like a boy playing on the
sea shore and diverting
himself and then finding a
smoother pebble or a prettier
shell than ordinary while the
greater ocean of truth lay all
undiscovered before me

Our message to
you:

We are teacher advocates for Play-Based

learning in the early childhood setting. Play
is very important in the lives of children.
Play is essential to development because it
contributes to the cognitive, physical, social
and emotional wellbeing of children of
youth.
We have devoted our careers to make an
impact on children and allow them to grow in
our classrooms.

Research:
Play

promotes social learning as she plays with other kids, creating roles
based on what she sees in the social world around her, adjusting her own
play behavior to the needs and demands of her peers.

Play supports emotional growth as the child is able to project her own
fears, joys, jealousies, angers, and ambitions onto toys, puppets, and other
playthings, and work out her feelings about a wide range of concerns in
constructive ways.

Play

supports cognitive development as the child works symbolically with

art materials, dramatic improvisation, and other modes of representation,
constructing patterns of meaning from interactions with things and people

Play

supports physical development through their interactions with the

environment during play, children gain control and ultimately mastery over
their bodies with the development of a range of manipulative and motor
skills.

What does a Play-Based

classroom look like?
The

term play-based is often interchanged with childcentered

The play-based classroom is broken up into sections, such
as a home or kitchen, science area, water table, reading
nook, space with blocks and other toys, or other areas.
Teachers encourage the kids to play, facilitating social
skills along the way. It may seem like they are just
playing, however they are learning valuable skills,
including important social skills and cooperation with
others.

Opposing Sides
Play-Based

vs Academic preschools:

Academic schools are teacher directed and managed

The

aim is to prepare students for kindergarten, with the majority

of the classroom time spent learning letters or numbers, telling
time or other skills.

Public

schools in the United States are pushing for more Academic

focused preschools, pushing children to learn at an earlier age

Some

schools are concerned with safety issues, causing them to

shy away from play-based learning

What the research says!

Many

European countries dont begin formal literacy and numeral lessons

until the age of at least six, if not seven.

Play

is the context in which children can most optimally learn

Pushing

too much academia can cause a child to loose interest and

motivation in learning.

Children

who participate in academic based preschool programs often

score higher than their peers on standardized tests, but the gap is
typically closed by the end of first grade.

Some

experts now claim that one of the greatest predictors of life long
success is a childs ability to control impulses (self regulation), which is
learned in social environments, such as a play based preschool program.

Children

who are enrolled in overly academic programs tend to have

more behavior problems than their peers.

Example Stories:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=bf5cEYG7Rfw&feature=youtu.be

Collaboration
www.isaeplay.org:

The Institute for Self Active Education (ISAE) is a non-profit

charitable organization established in 1980. ISAE is a community of practice
devoted to awakening the creative potential of children and adults through handson self active play and art making with open ended materials. ISAE provides
professional development workshops, play leadership training programs and
discovery retreats to support others in their pursuit of their creative potential. They
would be a great group to collaborate with and a great resource to use.

NAEYC.

Play Resources for Teachers and Care-givers.

www.naeyc.org/play/teachers: The National Association for the Education of
Young Children is a wonderful website that gives information on play. Play is an
important vehicle for developing self-regulation as well as for promoting language,
cognition, and social competence. They would be an excellent resource to use to
get relevant information on the topic of play based learning.

Play is Great! Agree?

Get Involved!
Contact

us!

Phone: (870)123-4567
Email: weloveplay@arakansasadvocates.com
Web: arkansasadvocates.org
Arkansas Advocates
123 Arkansas State Avenue
Jonesboro, Ar 72401

Resources
http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/129/1/e204.full.pdf+h

tml
https://

www.questia.com/read/1G1-181673299/outdoor-play-does-avoiding-t
he-risk-reduce-the-benefits

http://

www.naeyc.org/yc/files/yc/file/201407/Play_Memos_YC0514.pdf

http://www.pbs.org/parents/education/going-to-school/choosing/co

mparing-preschool-philosophies
/

http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED522537.pdf