Play for Children

Play is how children learnClick on the following links for images and videos for ideas about play interventions. Then as a team pick a case study from the Babies, Toddlers, Preschoolers or Kindergarten Tabs and develop some Play Interventions together.

Babies

Toddlers

Preschoolers

Kindergarten

Delayed Social-Emotional Development

Dealyed Language Development

Autism Intervention

Delayed Cognitive Development

Delayed Motor Development

Play Activities

Group Work

AssessmentTools

Assessments play a crucial role in Early Childhood Education by helping educators understand a child’s development, tailor learning experiences, and work effectively with families and other stakeholders. They track children’s progress across physical, cognitive, social-emotional, and language domains, ensuring milestones are met and identifying areas needing support.Assessments allow for individualized learning by addressing each child’s unique strengths and needs while enabling early detection of developmental delays or challenges, which leads to timely interventions.

Assessments

Developmental Screening

Milestones

Emma is an 11-month-old infant attending a daycare center with a mixed-age group of infants and toddlers. Her parents express concern that Emma isn’t yet babbling as much as other babies her age. She makes some sounds but hasn’t started forming syllables like "ba-ba" or "da-da." Her caregivers aim to foster Emma’s language development through play-based interventions.What play interventions would you plan?

Background

Case Study: Building Language Skills Through Play in Infants

NAEYC

ASHA

Developmental Screenings

images retrieved from Freepik

Liam is a 2-year-old toddler attending a community playgroup. His parents have noticed that he struggles with climbing stairs and running, often stumbling. He was a late walker and still prefers to crawl when given a chance. During group activities, he appears hesitant to participate in physically active games. The playgroup facilitators aim to help Liam develop his gross motor skills through engaging, play-based interventions.What play-based interventions would you plan?

Background

Case Study: Enhancing Gross Motor Skills Through Play in Toddlers

image retrieved from Freepik

Sophia is a 4-year-old preschooler who enjoys imaginative play but struggles with problem-solving and attention during structured activities. Her teacher notices that Sophia has difficulty completing puzzles, following multi-step instructions like putting 4 step story in order. The teacher decides to use play-based interventions to strengthen Sophia’s cognitive skills, focusing on memory, problem-solving, and attention span.What play-based interventions would you plan?

Background

Case Study: Boosting Cognitive Skills Through Play in Preschoolers

image retrieved from Freepik

Ethan is a 5-year-old kindergartener who struggles with sharing and managing frustration during group activities. His teacher notices that Ethan often withdraws or becomes very upset when conflicts arise with peers, such as when taking turns or resolving disputes in play. To support Ethan's social-emotional development, the teacher incorporates play-based interventions focused on emotional regulation, cooperation, and empathy.What play-based interventions would you plan?

Background

Case Study: Fostering Social-Emotional Skills Through Play in Kindergarteners

image retrieved from Freepik

Mia is a 4-year-old preschooler diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). While Mia excels in recognizing patterns and enjoys sensory activities, she faces challenges in classroom management skills, such as following routines, transitioning between activities, and engaging in group settings. Her teacher decides to implement play-based interventions to help Mia improve her ability to manage classroom expectations and participate more fully in group activities

Background

Case Study: Supporting Classroom Management Skills in a Preschooler with Autism Through Play-Based Interventions

image retrieved from Freepik

Intervention Strategies Visual Schedule Games: Mia uses a visual schedule with pictures representing daily activities (e.g., circle time, snack, playtime). The teacher incorporates a matching game where Mia matches activity cards to the schedule and celebrates her progress. Activity Example: During a transition, Mia matches a “playtime” card to the visual schedule, helping her anticipate the next activity. Structured Turn-Taking Play: To improve waiting and sharing, Mia participates in turn-based activities, such as building a block tower with peers or passing a toy in a circle. The teacher provides verbal and visual cues, like "It’s Mia’s turn next!" Activity Example: Building a shared tower where each child adds one block at a time. Sensory Break Areas: The classroom includes a sensory-friendly play area with items like fidget toys, textured mats, and weighted blankets. Mia learns to use this space when she feels overwhelmed, promoting self-regulation and re-engagement. Activity Example: During free play, Mia selects a fidget spinner from the sensory area to help calm herself before returning to group activities. Role-Playing with Social Stories: The teacher uses social stories combined with role-playing to teach Mia classroom routines, such as cleaning up or raising her hand to speak. Mia practices these skills in a play-based setting, such as pretending to be a teacher. Activity Example: Acting out “circle time” in a pretend classroom where Mia leads the group in singing a song.Interactive Group Songs with Rules: Songs like "Clean Up, Clean Up" or "If You’re Ready and You Know It" reinforce classroom rules through fun and repetition. Mia learns cues for actions like tidying up and paying attention during group time. Activity Example: During cleanup time, Mia sings along and puts toys in bins, prompted by the song’s rhythm.

Intervention Strategies Obstacle Course Adventures: The facilitators design a simple obstacle course using soft mats, tunnels, and low hurdles. They encourage Liam to crawl, climb, and jump in a playful setting. They cheer him on and model movements to build his confidence and coordination. Activity Example: Crawling through a tunnel and stepping over foam blocks. Chase and Catch Games: During outdoor play, facilitators introduce games like "Catch the Butterfly," where Liam chases bubbles or colorful scarves. These activities encourage running and improve balance. Activity Example: Running after large, slow-falling bubbles and popping them.Dancing to Music: Liam participates in music and movement sessions where he practices stomping, hopping, and spinning to the beat of fun, energetic songs. Activity Example: Stomping to "If You’re Happy and You Know It" and twirling during the instrumental breaks. Ball Play: Facilitators provide soft, lightweight balls for kicking, rolling, and throwing. They demonstrate how to kick the ball toward a target or roll it back and forth with a partner. Activity Example: Kicking a ball into a mini-goal or rolling it into a bowling pin setup. Nature Walks with Challenges: Liam joins the group for short nature walks that include stepping over logs, balancing on curbs, and climbing small hills, offering opportunities to practice gross motor skills in a natural environment.

Intervention Strategies Interactive Reading Sessions: Caregivers use brightly colored board books with large, simple pictures. They point to objects, name them aloud (e.g., "ball," "dog"), and encourage Emma to mimic sounds. For example: Caregiver: "This is a ball. Can you say 'ba'?" Emma responds by cooing or making a sound. Caregivers praise and reinforce her attempts. Songs and Rhymes with Gestures: Nursery rhymes with repetitive phrases and actions are introduced, such as "Itsy Bitsy Spider." The combination of melody, rhythm, and hand movements keeps Emma engaged and helps her associate words with actions. Play with Cause-and-Effect Toys: Caregivers provide toys like shape sorters, pop-up toys, or rattles. They model phrases like "push," "open," and "close" while demonstrating how to use the toys. This encourages Emma to associate words with actions. Face-to-Face Imitation Play: During floor time, caregivers sit at Emma’s level, mimic her sounds, and then add new ones to expand her vocalizations. For example, Emma: "Ah!" Caregiver: "Ah! Ba-ba!" This playful back-and-forth models turn-taking in conversation.This case study illustrates how intentional play-based strategies can effectively support early language development in infants.

Intervention Strategies Visual Schedule Games: Mia uses a visual schedule with pictures representing daily activities (e.g., circle time, snack, playtime). The teacher incorporates a matching game where Mia matches activity cards to the schedule and celebrates her progress. Activity Example: During a transition, Mia matches a “playtime” card to the visual schedule, helping her anticipate the next activity. Structured Turn-Taking Play: Mia participates in turn-based activities to improve waiting and sharing, such as building a block tower with peers or passing a toy in a circle. The teacher provides verbal and visual cues, like "It’s Mia’s turn next!" Activity Example: Building a shared tower where each child adds one block at a time. Sensory Break Areas: The classroom includes a sensory-friendly play area with items like fidget toys, textured mats, and weighted blankets. Mia learns to use this space when she feels overwhelmed, promoting self-regulation and re-engagement. Activity Example: During free play, Mia selects a fidget spinner from the sensory area to help calm herself before returning to group activities. Role-Playing with Social Stories: The teacher uses social stories combined with role-playing to teach Mia classroom routines, such as cleaning up or raising her hand to speak. Mia practices these skills in a play-based setting, such as pretending to be a teacher. Activity Example: Acting out “circle time” in a pretend classroom where Mia leads the group in singing a song. Interactive Group Songs with Rules: Songs like "Clean Up, Clean Up" or "If You’re Ready and You Know It" reinforce classroom rules through fun and repetition. Mia learns cues for actions like tidying up and paying attention during group time. Activity Example: During cleanup time, Mia sings along and puts toys in bins, prompted by the song’s rhythm.

Intervention StrategiesPuzzle Play Challenges: The teacher introduces age-appropriate puzzles with increasing complexity. They guide Sophia through the process by providing prompts such as, "Where does this piece fit?" and celebrating her efforts.Activity Example: Completing a 10-piece jigsaw puzzle featuring her favorite animals.Treasure Hunt with Clues: Sophia participates in a classroom treasure hunt. She follows picture-based clues leading to hidden objects, requiring her to sequence steps and make logical connections. Activity Example: A picture of a chair leads Sophia to look under a classroom chair, where she finds the next clue.Sorting and Categorizing Games: Using colorful blocks and toys, Sophia sorts items by color, size, or shape. The teacher introduces challenges, such as creating patterns or asking Sophia to sort items faster within a time limit. Activity Example: Sorting blocks into matching color bins, then creating a red-yellow-blue pattern.Imaginative Role-Playing: During free play, Sophia engages in pretend cooking in a play kitchen. The teacher enhances the activity by asking questions like, "What ingredients do we need to make soup?" and encouraging her to sequence tasks like chopping pretend vegetables and stirring the pot.Activity Example: Following a simple “recipe” with step-by-step instructions.Memory Matching Games: Sophia plays matching games using picture cards. The teacher gradually increases the number of cards to improve her memory and concentration. Activity Example: Matching pairs of animal cards after flipping them over in a memory game.