Early Years Learning Through Play
An Exploration of Play and Learning in the EYFS
Play is an essential aspect of early years learning, and it is through play that children develop vital skills and knowledge. The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) recognizes the importance of play in early years learning, and it forms an integral part of the curriculum. This article explores the significance of play in the early years, and how it contributes to the overall learning and development of children.
The Importance of Play in Early Years Learning
The importance of play in early years learning cannot be overstated. Play provides children with a wealth of opportunities to learn and grow in a fun and engaging way. Children learn best through their own experiences, and play provides them with the perfect platform to explore, experiment and learn in a safe and supportive environment.
Through play, children can develop their creativity, imagination, and problem-solving skills. They can experiment with different materials, objects, and ideas, and learn from their successes and failures. This type of learning allows children to make connections between their experiences and the world around them, and to develop a deeper understanding of how things work.
Play also helps children to develop their social skills, such as sharing, turn-taking, and cooperation, and to develop their emotional skills, such as empathy, self-awareness, and resilience. When children play together, they learn to work together and negotiate their own roles within the play activity. This helps them to develop a sense of belonging and a positive self-image.
It helps children to develop their communication and language skills, and to develop their understanding of the world around them. Through play, children learn to use language to express their thoughts and ideas, and to engage in conversation with others. They learn to understand and interpret the world around them through their play experiences.
The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) recognizes the importance of play in early years learning, and it forms an integral part of the curriculum. Play provides children with opportunities to develop essential skills and knowledge in a fun and engaging way, and helps to prepare them for the next stages of their learning journey.
This is why learning through play is so important, in fact in a study in Jamaica, poor toddlers with stunted growth were visited once a week for an hour by trained health workers, who engaged in learning through play and worked with their mothers to support and encourage this play. Twenty years later, the programme is shown to have benefitted the participants and reduced inequality in later life. They did better in school, had better social skills and were less likely to commit crimes. Their income was also an average of 25% higher than children who did not get the learning through play intervention.
Learning Through Play in the Early Years
The EYFS outlines specific areas of learning and development that should be covered through play, including communication and language, physical development, and personal, social, and emotional development.
Play is a crucial component of early years learning, as it allows children to learn at their own pace and in their own unique way. Children are natural explorers and learners, and play provides them with the perfect platform to explore and experiment with the world around them.
Through play, children can develop essential skills and knowledge in a safe and supportive environment, allowing them to build a solid foundation for their future learning and development.
Practitioners are encouraged to provide children with a wide range of play-based learning opportunities to support their development in different areas. For example, physical play can help children to develop their gross and fine motor skills, while imaginative play can help to develop their creativity and problem-solving skills.
Social play can help children to develop their social skills, such as sharing, cooperation, and communication, while sensory play can help to develop their understanding of the world around them.
Children are active learners, and they learn best by doing. Play allows children to explore and experiment with different ideas, materials, and objects, and to learn from their successes and failures. This type of learning allows children to develop a deeper understanding of how things work and to make connections between their experiences and the world around them.
The Role of Play in Early Years Learning
The role of play in early years learning is multifaceted, as it provides children with a diverse range of opportunities to learn and grow. Play can take many different forms, including child-initiated or adult-led, and can be based on children’s interests or planned activities.
Both structured and unstructured play, both indoors and outdoors, is essential for children’s learning and development.
Play allows children to explore their own interests and preferences and to develop their own ideas and concepts. By engaging in play, children can follow their natural curiosity and explore the world around them in a safe and supportive environment.
They can experiment with different materials and ideas and learn from their successes and failures. Play provides children with the opportunity to take risks, make mistakes, and learn from them, which is a vital part of their overall learning and development.
Play also plays an important role in developing children’s social and emotional skills. Through play, children learn to interact with others, share and take turns, and cooperate with their peers. They also develop their emotional skills, such as empathy, self-awareness, and resilience, which are essential for their overall well-being.
By learning to communicate effectively with others and to manage their own emotions, children are better equipped to handle the challenges they may face as they grow and develop.
Both structured and unstructured play are essential for children’s learning and development. Structured play provides children with specific learning objectives and goals, and can be used to teach new skills or concepts.
Unstructured play, on the other hand, allows children to follow their own interests and preferences and to explore the world around them in their own unique way. Both types of play provide children with important opportunities to learn and grow and should be incorporated into early years learning environments.
The Benefits of Play to Learning
Play-based learning enhances children’s creativity, imagination, and problem-solving skills. Children are natural explorers, and play provides them with the perfect platform to experiment with new ideas and concepts. By using their imagination and creativity, children can develop innovative solutions to problems, which helps to develop their problem-solving skills.
It helps to develop children’s cognitive, physical, and emotional skills. Through play, children can develop their cognitive skills, such as memory, attention, and reasoning, which are essential for their overall learning and development.
Physical play, such as running, jumping, and climbing, helps children to develop their gross and fine motor skills, which are essential for their physical development. Play also provides children with opportunities to develop their emotional skills, such as empathy, self-awareness, and resilience, which are essential for their overall well-being.
It enables children to develop a positive attitude towards learning. By engaging in play, children become motivated and enthusiastic learners, as they are naturally curious about the world around them. They are also more likely to take risks and try new things, which helps to build their confidence and self-esteem.
Play-based learning also helps children to develop their communication and language skills. By engaging in imaginative play, children learn to use language to express their thoughts and ideas and to engage in conversation with others. They also develop their understanding of the world around them by using language to describe their experiences.
What can we do to support learning through play?
It’s important to recognise the crucial role that play has in early childhood development. Support for play must be built into early childhood development programmes.
Babies and young children love to play with anything from their fingers and toes, to their toys, as well as with sounds and with adults and children. When young children play they learn at the same time, so play is a very important way for children to learn. If you watch very young children playing you will notice that they don’t always need other children or adults because they are quite happy playing alone, provided they can see and hear others nearby.
Therefore we don’t actively need to be involved in their play to support them.
We can do so by creating a safe and stimulating environment.
Some ways you can do this is by providing opportunities for children to:
- look at interesting things such as birds, animals, plants, trees, mobiles, shells, stones, boxes, tubes, mirrors
- listen to a range of sounds such as songs, rhymes, jingles, stories, music
- touch a variety of objects – hard, soft, bumpy, smooth, rough, cold, warm
- taste a range of flavours such as those in fruit, milk, vegetables, bread
- investigate things that open, close, float, sink, twist, turn
- explore objects such as large boxes, things that make noises, things that move
- experiment with water, sand, clay, dough, paint, glue, felt pens
- play for uninterrupted periods of time, alone or alongside others, with help from adults, and in their own way
- talk to other children and adults and to have their efforts rewarded
As children get older we simply continue to provide high-quality experiences for them. Which links in with cultural capital.
As an adult we can create opportunities for children to extend their learning for example by setting up a shopping centre or shop activity for your children to access.
Children can then learn new vocabulary, explore simple math’s by buying things, learn about different job roles and engage in pretend play.
Such a playful approach to learning builds on children’s interests and responds to their ideas for play and also allows scope for structured activities to teach specific skills and knowledge. Which has shown to boost engagement in learning and create more active learning.
Conclusion
Play is an integral part of early years learning, and it plays a vital role in children’s overall development. Learning through play provides children with opportunities to develop essential skills and knowledge in a fun and engaging way. Play-based learning enables children to develop their creativity, imagination, and problem-solving skills, and to develop their social and emotional skills.
The EYFS recognizes the importance of play in early years learning, and it forms an essential part of the curriculum. Practitioners are encouraged to provide children with opportunities to play in a variety of ways, both structured and unstructured, and to allow children to learn at their own pace, and in their own unique way.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Q: How can practitioners incorporate play-based learning into the EYFS curriculum?
A: Practitioners can incorporate play-based learning into the EYFS curriculum by providing children with a wide range of play-based learning opportunities, both structured and unstructured. This can include imaginative play, physical play, sensory play, and social play. Practitioners can also plan activities that are based on children’s interests and preferences, and that allow them to explore and experiment with new ideas and concepts.
Q: What is the importance of outdoor play in the EYFS?
A: Outdoor play is an important aspect of the EYFS curriculum, as it provides children with opportunities to engage with the natural environment, to develop their physical skills, and to learn about the world around them in a fun and engaging way. Outdoor play also helps children to develop their social skills, as they learn to share, cooperate, and communicate with their peers in a different setting.
Q: How can parents support their children’s learning through play at home?
A: Parents can support their children’s learning through play at home by providing them with a range of play-based learning opportunities, such as imaginative play, physical play, and sensory play. They can also encourage their children to explore their interests and preferences, and to experiment with new ideas and concepts. Parents can also engage in play with their children, which can help to strengthen their bond and enhance their learning experiences.
