Graduation Speech : Grade School

The relationship between play and learning seems obvious to many child professionals and parents, and yet there are still lack of understanding surrounding the importance of children's play. Some people believe that children need to "work" not play, and that playing serves no useful purpose in a learning and development environment. This is surprising considering that play, with its high levels of motivation and potential enjoyment empowers children (as well as people

Bruner (1996) views children as active problem-solvers who are ready to explore 'difficult ' subjects and who are learning from birth. It is stated (Emslie & Mesle, 2009) that children need to feel the joy of success, because if a child keep thwarted, he may have the sense of inferiority and timidity when confronted with new activities or tasks, which results in the lack of learning motivation and capacity. Every child has his own personality, interests and strengths, when children are playing, they can play the role that they are good at to get a sense of fulfillment. For example, in role play, a girl can play the role of mother and take care of baby dolls to feel “needed”. It is also important for teachers to understand each of the children and organize different activities so that everyone have the chance to show their fortes. Getting time to explore the world around them, so that through repetition and success children develop the confidence to try more complex activities, they can establish a virtuous cycle. When children feel safe, they will feel capable to meet challenges more effectively.

The Early Years Learning Framework describes play as a “context for learning” in which children make sense of their world (DEEWR, 2009, p.9). Play is essential for learning and development as it provides opportunities for children to express themselves creatively, construct new understandings, and develop relationships (Undiyaundeye, 2013). Play supports the student’s developmental domains such as; social, language, and creativity, cognitive, emotional and physical development. The National Quality Framework acknowledges the educator’s role as facilitator, in which they respond to student’s ideas, play and use intentional teaching to extend and scaffold each student learning (ACECQA, 2013, p. 40). Vygotsky’s socio-cultural theory describes learning as a social activity, in which the child’s social and cognitive understanding is constructed through social interaction (Duchesne et al., 2013; Arthur et al., 2015). He believes that play occurs in a socio-cultural context and provides ‘Zone of Proximal’ development for a student in which they can behave beyond their age and act in ways that are not typical of their daily behavior. The educator at pre-primary structured the classroom to support and encourage interaction, for instance, the home corner, which consisted of multiple dining chairs and a range of resources for dramatic play. The pre-primary teacher took on the role as onlooker and mediator during the children’s play, interrupting their play to manage behavior issues,

I dance 20 hours a week, and found it very hard to keep up with my school work. Many other students have the same problem with their after school activity. If we didn’t have the option of attending a K12 high school, there would be fewer up and coming athletes in the world. In this essay, I am going to tell you why it is a good idea to have a transfer offer from public high school to online high school. There can also be many issues that teens face in completing their school work on time, and correctly. Some students do not have time to do their work in the best effort and skills that they can do, which brings their grade and self-esteem down in a flash if they do one thing incorrectly. Some students do not have time to do school work at

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).

In this pedagogical statement I will be reflecting on and confronting my understandings about play. I will be showing this by sharing two moments of play I have been involved with during practicums. I will be covering links between understandings of play and my own practice, the problematic nature of play with respect to the role of the teacher, aspirations for very young learners in the 21st century, highlighting the role of play in developing creativity, communication and citizenship, and my avocation for play will be clearly evident throughout this pedagogical statement.

Similarly, Keating et al (2000) reported the dilemma facing teachers who are required to provide continual recorded evidence of learning and achievement to both parents and professionals. So, should teaching professionals encourage quality learning through active play, which is often difficult to formally assess compared to the readily assessable written tasks, or should we choose more formal work which may sacrifice the quality of the child's learning experience? The current focus on the expectations of achievement that I have observed, and have suffered scrutiny of, has highlighted a perception of play being somehow inferior and supplementary to learning rather than as an important medium of learning in its own right. Keating (2000) believed that through observing child initiated play, especially in its recreational form, play may not directly relate to better cognition as measured in SATs tests, but conversely, can foster other important abilities, such as persistence, self-esteem, task-orientation, creativity and positive attitudes to learning. Then, if play highlights so many important learning aptitudes within the classroom, what does or should good practice entail?

Children learn to share and take turns through the playing of games and to consider the needs and feelings of others.

We know that young children develop social skills through play, and that they develop critical thinking skills and language is enriched and vocabulary increased. Play, especially make-believe play, aids in the child's development of the execution function, which is a key role in the child's ability to self-regulate. The curriculum "Tools of the Mind" approaches learning as socially mediated by peers and focused on play.

This is shown once the children notice the bears in the play area and state ideas on how to construct the bears’ new home. The children learn that other have differing opinion but decide to problem solve, by listening to each other, gathering evidence, and careful direction from their teacher; until they find a viable option: a bear cave built of blocks. This makes the children become effective problem solvers and learn the process of collaborating in a group setting. Children also gain skills in the socioemotional domain as they learn roles in the group and become productive to produce a product while filling those roles. The children exhibit this behavior as Megan assumes role of a ticket salesperson for the train and coach others how to sell more tickets. Megan maintains her role and does not push her way to being the conductor of the train or other role in the zoo. This teaches that each member of the group has a vital role and functions within the group to create a meaningful experience and product. This is a skill taught through play and multiple opportunities to develop this skill. This is also true for developing self-regulation, denying impulses and making rational decisions. Play helps children to practice within this area. Austin displays self-regulation when he asked the teacher if it was ok to bring water into his play area, which wasn’t usually allowed, to make his monkey food. He was self-regulated enough to come up with the reasoning

High school is supposed to be the place where you have fun and a time in your life you’re supposed to enjoy. Movies often trick you into believing that high school is an amazing time in your life and there is nothing but parties and fun. In Bring it on, they portrayed the fun and exciting part of high school cheer-leading, however they intentionally leave out the tough times high school students’ face in school and in their practices. In other popular movies, such as High School Musical the students have no pressures other than the next basketball game. In reality, this doesn 't happen. The constant pressure is affected by the grade level you are in. In high school, students can be classified based on the pressures that are faced in each grade level into the categories of freshman, sophomores/juniors, and seniors. I am here to help you make your high school experience less stressful.

Although it has been 15 years since I played with building blocks and enjoyed taking a nap in a kindergarten classroom, playing with other kids and using games to learn fundamental skills like counting and how to write the alphabet are some of the most vivid memories from my fairly young childhood. Even going back and visiting the elementary school I attended, I don’t see the “formal education” method that David Kohn mentions in his NYTimes article, “Let Kids Learn Through Play”.

Play tests the ability of the children to be able to develop ideas around places and objective. The pretend play assists children in developing important critical thinking and evaluative skills. For instance, the board games tech the children importance concept such as waiting, turn-taking and socialization with other students. Children during play use gross and fine motor skills and react socially to each other. The children thinking what they are going to do and use language to communicate with one another and they respond emotionally to the activities.

Play in the classroom is very important for students. Play helps teachers educate their students by having them interact with the lesson in a hand on setting. Theorists like Erik Erikson, Piaget, and Vygotsky have paved the way for play in the classroom. Play is important for social, emotional, and cognitive development. The brain develops with stimulation, and play provides stimulation for all ages.

Do not assume all we 'll do for this class is help get kids motivated with school and beyond. This line of thinking is the wrong idea to enter this class especially when working with younger students through compass to campus. My thinking was how I can make this class more effective for me and how I can make the experience better for the students I will be working with. I was worrying about this every day in the beginning of this adventure because the school system and living condition on the reservation makes life hard for students making education difficult to be absorbed due to the essential commodities not available to the students at Lummi. The students struggle in the classroom due to their ethnic location makes their lives harder