Planning for Learning (through play)

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Planning for Learning (through play)

• P1 /P2 Teachers

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Aims

• To raise awareness of the importance of play in
  the context of learning
• To experience planning for  learning through play
  and play based activities

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Rationale

• The Northern Ireland Curriculum aims to
  empower young people to achieve their potential
  and to make informed and responsible decisions
  throughout their lives
• Big Picture Primary Curriculum

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Quotes

• Play is the highest expression of human
  development in childhood, for it alone is the
  free expression of what is in a child's soul.
• Friedrich Froebel
• Sometimes people forget that play is learning
  and learning is play.
• Peter Dixon

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Learning Through Play

• Play
• Develops the fundamental skills of literacy,
  numeracy and oral communication
• Provides rich and varied contexts for developing
  skills such as observing, organising, recording,
  interpreting and predicting
• Promotes positive attitudes to schools and to
  learning
• Provides opportunities to work in a practical way
  

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Learning Through Play

• Provides opportunities for developing movement
  and manipulative skills
• Develops natural curiosity and stimulates
  imagination
• Provides opportunities for exploration,
  investigation, problem solving and decision
  making
• Provides opportunities to develop knowledge
  understanding and skills through a range of
  contexts spanning all subjects in the curriculum

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Play is Important

• Play promotes childrens development, learning
  creativity and independence
• Play keeps children healthy and active
  active children become active adults
• Play fosters social inclusion, it helps children
  understand the people and places in their lives,
  learn about their environment and develop a sense
  of community.

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Play is Important

• Play allows children to find out about themselves
  their abilities and their interests
• Play is therapeutic, it helps children to deal
  with difficult or painful circumstances, such as
  emotional stress or medical treatments
• Play gives children the chance to let off steam
  and have fun

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How do we do it?

• Choose Starting points based on
  Plan Together

What do already know? What do we want to learn?
How will we go about this? Who/what can help
us? How do we use our findings? How will we tell
other?
Curriculum requirements Childrens interests/
experiences Seasonal/ global/topical events Media
Story/ music Class visit/visitors Artefacts
How do we do it?
Identify Learning Activities That
Demonstrate and Review Learning
Meet curriculum requirements Involve decision
making and problem solving Are practical and
stimulating Promote ad challenge thinking Allow
children to draw conclusions Allow children to
present ideas and demonstrate learning
What have I/we found out? What did I enjoy
most? What did my friend find out? What will I/we
do next? What might I/we done differently? How
will I demonstrate my learning?
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Workshop

• Planning for Learning
• Planning for Play

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Pause for thought

• We do not stop playing because we grow old. We
  grow old because we stop playing.
• George Bernard Shaw

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The Challenge

• The important thing is not so much that every
  child should be taught but that every child
  should be given the wish to learn.
• John Lubbock