Creative Play

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The emphasis and importance of play within the curriculum has recognizably increased over the years which has been specifically seen in the Early Years Foundation Phase. The EYFS notifies enabling environments as one of its key principles, to create an environment that encourages creativity and the experience of new materials and skills. (Moyles, 2010)

There are many numerous types of play to be used in a learning environment that have been identified by different theorists, although my research has shown the most frequent to be fantasy, physical, exploratory, creative, manipulative and games with rules. Although there are definitions to each type of play they can often interlink with one other and children can experience multiple plays occurring at once.

Bennett (1996) and Moyles (2009) have both commented on how powerful the process of learning through play is, and the idea that learning will spontaneously occur as the child takes control over their own learning, and bases it upon their own needs. Piaget’s theory on cognitive development also promoted the child as an explorer or a developing scientist to the extent of the child having the ability to think and understand things by discovering on their own, which helps to promote inquiry amongst children.

Creative play is significant in a child’s development of independence, as it focuses on encouraging children to explore the environment they are in and the rest of the world. It also allows opportunities for children to communicate and express their feelings through creative play activities such as drawing, painting, and sometimes role play.

Creative play offers opportunities for children to discover weaknesses and strengths in areas of learning very early on in their education. Children can become aware of the learning styles that are most beneficial for them, taking into consideration the VAK learning styles, visual, auditory and kinaesthetic. Children can build upon areas that they less confident in as creative learning can combine all three learning styles and give them that opportunity.

Broadhead et al. (2010) agrees that children learn in many different ways but argues that research has not proved that by learning through play you can gain unique developmental qualities, however Isaac (1993) considers play is a child’s life and a way in which one comes to understand the world.

References:

Bennett, N. et al. (1996) Teaching through Play: Teachers’ thinking and classroom practice. McGraw-Hill Companies, The.

Broadhead, P., Howards, J. and Wood, E.A. (2010) Play and Learning in the Early Years: From Research to Practice. United Kingdom: SAGE Publications Ltd.

Isaacs, S. (1933) Social Developmentin Young Children. London: Routledge.

Moyles, J. (2009) Play: the powerful means of learning, in S. Smidt (ed.) The Early Years: A Reader. London: Routledge.

Moyles, J. (2010) The Excellence of Play. 3^rd edn. Berkshire, England: McGraw-Hill International (UK) Ltd.