Power of play
Why play?
Serendipity is a child- centered and play-responsive early years program where the curriculum is based on observations of the children’s interests to create child led projects and a child led environment ~ the emergent curriculum.
The BC Early Learning Framework is embedded into the program.
The Early Learning Framework is an invitation to re-envision early care and learning spaces, education systems, and society. It is intended to promote dialogue about understandings of childhood, knowledge, education, and learning.
What is child centered? Child Centered is… linking concepts to experiences… controlling the environment, not the little people in it… making a commitment to understanding the research that impacts our profession… believing that there is NOT a one-size fits all formula that can be applied to each child, each time, in each situation… engaging and connecting with the children, even at the expense of the lesson plan… the hardest way to be… why? Because it takes passion, dedication and commitment on the part of ALL grown-ups involved! ~ Lisa Murphy
What is play based? Play-based learning is, essentially, to learn while at play. A play based approach in early childhood education encourages children's holistic development through their own curiosity. Using their bodies and minds, children learn through hands-on investigation. The learning environment is tailored to each child and is directed or supported by a teacher.
What is Play? Play, at least in humans, is not necessarily all-or-none, but can exist in matters of degree. An activity can be characterized as play, or described as playful, to the degree that it contains the characteristics listed here: Play is activity that is (1) self-chosen and self-directed; (2) intrinsically motivated; (3) guided by mental rules; (4) imaginative; and (5) conducted in an active, alert, but relatively non-stressed frame of mind. ~ Peter Gray
What is play responsive? Play-responsive indicates that my teaching, the learning and the activities are in response to the children's play. This means I need to set aside time and space for the children to engage in their own autonomous play so that I (or any other adult) does not interfere with it, unless it is a matter of safeguarding. I am observing this play - it informs me of the children's interests, the children's abilities, their competence and capabilities, their interactions, their needs etc... I write down notes, take films and photos etc to ensure I don't forget and can also see patterns, or return to and reflect on over time.Responding can be adding/changing/removing materials, changing the environment, introducing new knowledge through books, films, experiences, visits, dialogues...
The response strives to be in tune with the needs, abilities and interests of the children as individuals and also as a group.
Where it all began ~ Serendipity has always been a program where play was at the core of everyday. I can't say I am 100% play-based as we do have an adult directed gathering time (other scall it circle time), however, besides our gathering, which is child- centered and not very long. For our gathering, we will hang up our owls on the tree to see who is there for the day, read a story, dance, sing a song, talk or whatever the children would want to do.
The rest of day consists of children playing and eating. We have a beginning, a middle and an end of day. Children know what to expect each day with the same flow of the day. The in between will be a little different between each day and each group of children. For the most part, some activities/invitations to play/provocations are set out each day that are the same for each group. However, there are some things that are just specific to some groups of children that are only meaningful to them and they are exploring more. This doesn't mean I won't have some of the same items out the rest of the time, I will sometimes, as some of those children come other days with different children. What is means is, if a particular class is interested in birds, I will have provocations out during the week about birds and do specific interest based activities with just that group of children that is interested in birds, not everyone that attends has to do that activity. It doesn't mean those children do not learn anything because I didn't do that specific bird activity with them, it's just not in their interest, so I will follow whatever their interest may be and see where it will take us. I will put out activities that welcome every child to participate in if they choose to do so, however it is not a requirement that every child does it. Play is self chosen, so I do not choose for them for the sake of everyone has to do it and for the the "what will my child bring home in their backpack" thought that some families imagine a "preschool" to do. Your child may go home with a bunch of sticks and leaves over a piece of art work!
A while back I had noticed that a lot of centers were advertising they were a play based program
The BC Early Learning Framework is embedded into the program.
The Early Learning Framework is an invitation to re-envision early care and learning spaces, education systems, and society. It is intended to promote dialogue about understandings of childhood, knowledge, education, and learning.
What is child centered? Child Centered is… linking concepts to experiences… controlling the environment, not the little people in it… making a commitment to understanding the research that impacts our profession… believing that there is NOT a one-size fits all formula that can be applied to each child, each time, in each situation… engaging and connecting with the children, even at the expense of the lesson plan… the hardest way to be… why? Because it takes passion, dedication and commitment on the part of ALL grown-ups involved! ~ Lisa Murphy
What is play based? Play-based learning is, essentially, to learn while at play. A play based approach in early childhood education encourages children's holistic development through their own curiosity. Using their bodies and minds, children learn through hands-on investigation. The learning environment is tailored to each child and is directed or supported by a teacher.
What is Play? Play, at least in humans, is not necessarily all-or-none, but can exist in matters of degree. An activity can be characterized as play, or described as playful, to the degree that it contains the characteristics listed here: Play is activity that is (1) self-chosen and self-directed; (2) intrinsically motivated; (3) guided by mental rules; (4) imaginative; and (5) conducted in an active, alert, but relatively non-stressed frame of mind. ~ Peter Gray
What is play responsive? Play-responsive indicates that my teaching, the learning and the activities are in response to the children's play. This means I need to set aside time and space for the children to engage in their own autonomous play so that I (or any other adult) does not interfere with it, unless it is a matter of safeguarding. I am observing this play - it informs me of the children's interests, the children's abilities, their competence and capabilities, their interactions, their needs etc... I write down notes, take films and photos etc to ensure I don't forget and can also see patterns, or return to and reflect on over time.Responding can be adding/changing/removing materials, changing the environment, introducing new knowledge through books, films, experiences, visits, dialogues...
The response strives to be in tune with the needs, abilities and interests of the children as individuals and also as a group.
Where it all began ~ Serendipity has always been a program where play was at the core of everyday. I can't say I am 100% play-based as we do have an adult directed gathering time (other scall it circle time), however, besides our gathering, which is child- centered and not very long. For our gathering, we will hang up our owls on the tree to see who is there for the day, read a story, dance, sing a song, talk or whatever the children would want to do.
The rest of day consists of children playing and eating. We have a beginning, a middle and an end of day. Children know what to expect each day with the same flow of the day. The in between will be a little different between each day and each group of children. For the most part, some activities/invitations to play/provocations are set out each day that are the same for each group. However, there are some things that are just specific to some groups of children that are only meaningful to them and they are exploring more. This doesn't mean I won't have some of the same items out the rest of the time, I will sometimes, as some of those children come other days with different children. What is means is, if a particular class is interested in birds, I will have provocations out during the week about birds and do specific interest based activities with just that group of children that is interested in birds, not everyone that attends has to do that activity. It doesn't mean those children do not learn anything because I didn't do that specific bird activity with them, it's just not in their interest, so I will follow whatever their interest may be and see where it will take us. I will put out activities that welcome every child to participate in if they choose to do so, however it is not a requirement that every child does it. Play is self chosen, so I do not choose for them for the sake of everyone has to do it and for the the "what will my child bring home in their backpack" thought that some families imagine a "preschool" to do. Your child may go home with a bunch of sticks and leaves over a piece of art work!
A while back I had noticed that a lot of centers were advertising they were a play based program
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