I chose to research how play influences the growth and development
of social, emotional and cognitive skills in young children. I chose this topic because I am very interested in play and the influences it has on a child's success. I have always been passionate about play and believe that for young children it is how they learn and grow. In my opinion, without play there is limited self discovery, child-centered learning, and without play children do not learn how to manipulate the environment around them. My hopes right now are that through my research, I can find valuable and significant information and proof that I can share with other educators to begin on the path of bringing more play back into public education in our area. Right now, the students at my school only get 20 minutes of play a day at school, and "centers" or "free play" and play in general is not suggested. Teaching Kindergarten, it is frustrating and difficult to teach under these circumstances.
So far in my research I have found a few articles that I want to explore further. It has been a learning process for me and will continue to be as I read and research more. My hopes are that I can become effective at finding articles that help my research and help me to grow more as a researcher and learner overall.
I would love any suggestions about ways that you attempt to research your specific points, or things that you find helpful in your research process. I feel the most challenging thing for me will be to quickly and effectively find research that will pertain to my topic.
Best wishes to you all as you continue on this journey!
Hello Caitlin, what a great topic! I also am a fan of play. I teach preschool and I already feel the pressures of "achademics" from parents and the community. Parents show anxiety and worry that their children will not be ready for kindergarten and there is such a push for formal education.
ReplyDeleteThere is a lot research on play and even more as the importance of play becomes more recognized. There are different theories and approaches to play learning such as Constructivist, Reggio Emilia, Montessori and so on. Also with play there is free play, guided play and directed play. I would start with NAEYC.org because it is well known and used at Walden. NAEYC publishes many articles regarding play and its benefits for young children.
Best of luck!
Play is very important to young children because it is where they learn to be creative and how to play with other children etc. In my opinion, school should be fun in the early years. There has to be a balance between play and learning of course, but the schools are becoming to standardized. I hope you find ways to remedy this problem.
ReplyDeleteHi, Caitlin.
ReplyDeleteI can definitely identify with the research topic that you have chosen. I completely agree that play is a vital part of the learning process! In my area I can see similar trends in kindergarten classrooms. Some of our local schools still focus on play based learning. The teachers design the majority of their day to be spent in interest centers and schedule 30 minutes of outside play as well as 30 minutes of free play in the classroom. Unfortunately, that is pretty rare. Most of the kindergarten classrooms I've observed are focused on seatwork and more scripted teaching methods. I cringe when I walk in and see rows of tiny desks with a worksheet on top of each one while the kindergarteners sit silently for far too long. I look forward to following you as you research this topic. I will be sure to pass along any good resources that I find in this area.
Aloha again Caitlin,
ReplyDeleteTo mention that I'm excited that you picked the topic of play would be an understatement. It's up to people like us to change the way many think in regard to a child's free time. Kids laugh and play while adults learn to suffer and sometimes even war with each other. The children are the teachers once again..