Setting the Stage for Play Four main factors for the quantity and quality of play Time, Space, Props, and Planned Experiences

1. Time Free play periods

2. Space

Considerations  Arrangement of the room  Play areas that encourage…  Utilize both indoors and out  Use a separate area for a play theme if possible.

3. Props

Any toy or material that a child uses in play is a prop

Need variety (structured and unstructured)

Provide enough props

Props should reflect the cultures of the children in your care

4. Planned Experiences May need planned experiences to successfully act out new roles

1 What adults can do to support play

Watch

Provide environment, support, and encouragement

Playful attitude

Appreciate the playfulness of children

General principles for supporting play

* Let children choose activity

* Let children determine how long they play

*Physical environment safe

* Arrange space to minimize interruptions

* Encourage use of objects and try out new skills in novel ways

*Plan schedule

When children are pretending

2 *Allow choice

*Unless dangerous allow to act out negative scenes

*Supply props for themes of interest

*Arrange experiences to foster ideas for pretending

*Participate when needed

When children are making or building

*Process most important

*Do not use competitions to compare products

*Expect and allow mess

*Provide more materials as children grow older Helping Babies Play

3 Birth to 4 months (eyes and ears)  bright and moving  hold babies up to your shoulder and move around  show a mirror  talk in playful way  sing and dance  play with baby’s hands and feet

Four to 8 months (ears and eyes but also hands and mouth)  toy safety a primary concern  washable and durable  no sharp edges or small parts  toys that move or make sound  minimize interruptions  have duplicates

Eight to 12 months (active)  provide objects to put in containers and dump out  hide objects for baby to find  repeat their sounds  read to baby  provide challenging toys  in working order  introduce toys with more than one part  stretch baby’s arms above head  pat–a-cake, peek-a-boo  enjoy moving through space

Twelve to 18 months (experimenters)  copy others

4  simple pictures of familiar items  read to baby  moving, walking, and climbing  play along with child’s pretend  real looking toys

Toddlers Play 18mths -3 years (independence-choice)  challenging gross motor skills  challenging fine motor skills  provide objects that relate  working order  duplicates of play materials  group size small  allow children to try new skills in their own way  nesting and stacking materials  opportunities for water play and manipulating  building materials safe size  need realistic objects

Helping Preschoolers Play: Three to Five years (playful, skilled body, language skills, energy, imagination and curiosity)

5  variety of toys and equipment  toys and material to develop fine motor skills

Pretend Play (more complex roles and object substitutions than toddlers)  add variety  props do not need to be as realistic  provide variety of props for symbolization  children choose the themes  become a participant in the drama  puppets and stage  read children books  take field trips

Building and Making play

 make available several choices of constructive activities  use words for constructing songs…  children dictate and you write

Helping Primary Age Children Play 6-8 (increasing competence)

6  allow choices  focus on the process  provide free time when possible  encourage children to dramatize  display projects for others  provide film, tapes, and equipment  provide space and equipment for large motor  provide a psychologically safe environment

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