Learning Through Play

A quality preschool is going to understand that children learn through play. This should maintain a balance between child-led and adult-led playing. Nevertheless, play really is important.

Playing In Childhood

Play is something that children do instinctively and gain a lot of pleasure from doing so. As such it is considered to be an intrinsic part of childhood. A quality preschool not only recognizes this but they also recognize that a curriculum that is driven by play is more effective and it also fosters a love of learning in children. Quality preschools will value curriculum that is based upon playing for another reason too: It values the fact that each child is unique and that they each have the right to learn in the way that suits them best.

Play based curriculum strives to build learning experiences around the child instead of making the child fit into their curriculum. This type of curriculum understands that imaginative, thoughtful play is best for children because it allows them a lot of rich, diverse opportunities. Whenever these opportunities are available in a quality preschool children are more likely to develop the types of skills, attitudes and knowledge that are desirable.

Observing Play In A Quality Preschool

There have been studies done within the realms of quality preschools that show that children are working at a higher cognitive level whenever they are playing than when they are in a normal classroom setting. This is something that high quality preschool teachers need to be mindful of. They should also understand that they may be limiting what a child is learning when they play because of the questions they are asking. For this reason, they need to be asking more open ended questions and then the child will be more willing to show them more things.

Planned Purposeful Play

Some researchers have stated that play should be both planned and purposeful. However, some wonder what this really means and if it is in conflict with a truly child-centered approach to learning. After all, it does seem that not all play would count here. It is as if not all forms of play are purposeful or valuable in an educational manner of speaking. This simply adds to the controversy that surrounds this issue though. One thing should be kept in mind throughout this entire debate though: If children are entitled to the right to play, then it should be acceptable in all of its various forms, within reason of course. So, if there are some educators who feel the need to censure a child's play, perhaps what they are finding to be inappropriate isn't the play but the setting or the context that the playing is being done in.

In Conclusion

Now that you understand why play is so important to a quality preschool education, it is time to take a look at your program. Are you allowing your children plenty of time to play? If not, you may not be allowing them to learn as much as possible. So, take some time to see where you can incorporate more play into your program today.