Evaluation of a Childs Toy in Relation to the Theories of Play

Analyse the theoretical perspectives taken to learning and development through play Humanistic theory- says that children should have the chance to choose what they want to play with and carry out their own ideas. Adults should be supportive towards the child which will improve their confidence and self esteem. Social learning theory- children learn though copying other children and adults.

Dramatic play permits children to fit the reality of the world into their own interests and knowledge. One of the purest forms of symbolic thought available to young children, dramatic play, contributes strongly to the intellectual development of children. Young children learn by imagining and doing and dramatic play allows them to do so. Dramatic play also promotes the use of speaking and listening skills. When children take part in this type of play, they practice words they have heard others say, and realize that they must listen to what other “players” say in order to be able to respond in an appropriate fashion. This style of play also promotes the development of social skills through interaction with others, peers or adults, which is a necessary factor in a child’s future.

Piaget developed a workable theory that has had considerable implications for education, most notably for child-centred learning methods in nursery and infant schools. Piaget argued that young children think quite differently from adults so therefore the teacher should adapt the teaching methods to suit the child. For example, nursery school classrooms can provide children with play materials that encourage their learning. Using sets of toys that encourage the practice of sorting, grading and counting. Play areas, where children can develop role-taking skills through imaginative play. Materials like water, sand, bricks and crayons that help children make their own constructions and create symbolic representations of objects and people in their lives. A teacher’s role is to create the conditions in which learning may best take place.

Did you know that play expands a child’s learning and development? Once parents understand that play is crucial in their child’s life then they can begin to help their son or daughter be the best he or she can be. According to Lev Vygotsky “play shapes how children make sense of their worlds, how they learn thinking skills, and how they acquire language.” After spending time at the Bombeck Center I learned that children play in many diverse ways, thus learning numerous new things within each center in which they interact. Lev Vygotsky along with Jean Piaget researched the need for guided social interaction as well as the necessity for spontaneous, self-discovered learning. The Bombeck Center focuses on a play-based learning curriculum to ensure a child’s ability to access social interactions and self-discoveries at the tip of their fingers.

Lev Vygotsky believed that social and cognitive development work simultaneously to build and evolve on one another. He believed that social, cultural and personal experience cannot be detached from each other and many things influence the way children learn and develop, not just their own experiences, thus Vygotsky’s socio-cultural theory. Vygotsky’s ideas were and remain controversial as he had no specific training in psychology or children’s development. His preeminent contribution to children’s development is his recognition of the value of progressing knowledge by means of interaction with educators, peers and family (Mooney, 2000, p. 83). The major ideas of Vygotsky’s theory are scaffolding and the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD). Scaffolding is a process Vygotsky described as the framework or temporary support for children’s learning. In order for scaffolding to be beneficial, it must be responsive to the child’s needs (Coon & Mitterer, 2013, pp. 106-107).

Mildred Parten and Jean Piaget are two theorists that have had great influences on the way we understand children. Piaget constructed the idea that a person’s thinking passes through four stages and as the person grows, their way of thinking changes thus entering a different stage. He emphasized mostly the preoperational stage, which is for ages two to seven years old. In this stage children are seen as illogical thinkers but they do engage in make-believe games by using objects for purposes other than their actual intended use. Between the ages of four and seven, they still do not think logically but they become interested in games that have rules, structure, and social interaction. Unlike Jean Piaget, Mildred Parten did not see types of

The types of toys children play with can affect how they develop. Toys can help or hinder a child’s development in intelligence, social skills and personality. Certain characteristics may be genetically entwined in a human being, but some characteristics and behaviors can be learned, from parents, surroundings, and the toys with which a youngster plays. Elise Moore, author of “How Do Toys Aid Development”, stated “if play is the work of the child, toys are the child’s tools” (Moore, 2).

 zone of proximal development. To reach the target that child need lots of help and not steps which are to big as this could knock there confidence. Another stage Vygotsky has is ‘the importance of play’ he believed that play provides essential skills to improve their social, personal, and professional activates. This means that children can play and do things beyond what they can do in real life- such as play mums and dads, pretend to drive a car. Though play they talk to each other and pretend they are in a different world with only their friends. Play is another way they can reach the zone of proximal development. Reconstruction is another stage which means child experience the same situation again and again as they grow up. Each time they have this experience they can deal with it at a higher level. This means

The terms “play”, “learn” and “teach” are commonly used in the early childhood sector. This essay attempts to define and interconnect these terms to produce a holistic understanding of how play can be used as a medium to help children learn.

Puppets encourage imaginative, improvisational play and self-expression. Language development also increases from playing with puppets through story telling. Puppets also encourage social and emotional development through allowing children an acceptable way to express feeling and act out situations.

Another ongoing debate till this date is, “value of play and what children should play with?”, Whether it’s ‘nature’ or ‘nurture’ because of which we are predisposed to certain outcomes. But today many experts have been believing that it is not one or the other, but both nature and

There are numerous theories of play and countless theorists, from Freud and Spencer to Piaget and Vygotsky, who have studied play in relation to what it is and what it does for the child. This essay will outline the definition and value of play and the importance of how it can foster the child’s learning in regards to these theorists who studied the effects in great detail. It will discuss the how the environments constructed by educators can impact play and the theories of learning relating to the quote “play and learning are inextricably woven together ...” Ebbeck and Waniganayake, 2010, p. 5).

Justification of this critique was also provided by Vygotsky theory of development .Vygotsky (1929) believes that adults and child’s peers are involved in shaping cognitive development of the

Research, past and present, clearly points to the importance of play for the healthy and full development of the young child. Piaget theorized that a child's mental models, or cognitive structures, are based on the child's activities: engagement makes meaning. Many children today are not benefiting from a balance of intellect and imagination. Play is declining in our schools and preschools to meet the social

“For young children, there is no distinction between play and learning; they are one and the same. Playing is a priority in early childhood, yet not all play is the same” (Butler, 2008, p. 1). Since the beginning of mankind children have imitated adults and learned to survive through play. Evidence of this includes toys and board games from 6,000 years ago that have been found in Egypt and Asia (Dollinger, 2000). In the last two centuries, child’s play has been observed and studied by theorists and recognized as an important tool for adult life. Three theorists that studied children and spent their lives researching how children develop were Erik Erikson, Jean Piaget and Lev Vygotsky. These theorists agreed that from the time a child is