There is a saying, “Give a man a fish, and he eats a day. Teach a man to fish, and he eats all his life.” It is a mantra for early childhood teachers because they are the ones that lay the foundation for learning that children can build on to progress through the school years. They do not just want to give the answers to the kids but want them to learn how to get the answers for themselves and find a great way to do that through play-based learning.
Learning through play allows children to think creatively, explore, investigate, and learn about the world around them while playing. It does not mean using a smartphone and then going away, but instead giving them the material they can manipulate, build, create, and question at their own pace and their own pace.
Children are naturally curious and will ask many questions throughout the day. Enabling them to understand how things work alone or with friends allows them to understand things better while giving them a sense of accomplishment.
Skills
Does play develop the basics of intellectual, physical, emotional, and social skills that are necessary for success throughout life and the best thing about play-based learning? Children love to play and do not see it as a learning activity, just for fun. Learning for children are linked, they do not see any difference between academic learning and play, that is, kids do not understand that they learn when they do, but they do.
Play-based learning allows children to actively solve problems, help them develop math and literacy skills, and develop social skills such as problem-solving with others, sharing opinions, and developing ideas about the world around them.
Not surprisingly, many kindergarten programmes around the world have embraced this model of education. It allows children to think creatively about what they want to do and how they will achieve their goals. Children coming out of the programme have many necessary skills that will be useful if they join the primary and secondary classes and continue their learning.
Let’s talk about children aged 0-5. They excel in child development and early childhood education; the teacher can teach children about diverse cultures, second languages,and the opportunity to grow and learn in a positive environment.
Kindergarten
More kindergartens and pre-school teachers is adopting the play-based approach. Learning by doing is essential and the key for all ages, and especially for this age group!
Let’s start with the subject of kindergarten projects. Teachers use creativity to teach textures, colors, science, and mathematics to students- all items. The available mediums are very varied, and your preschoolers are ready to participate. They do not need to know how to read or count to get started, and the learning is done as and when.
Space Setup & Educational Tools
No play-based learning room would be complete without an outdoor space allowing children to explore and develop their overall skills. The time spent each day outdoors is part of the program and will enable children to be creative playing in all seasons.
Educational tools, language resources, literature, writing tools, and painting stations are also valuable additions to the room as they foster creativity and experimentation. The classrooms for 3 to 4 years old are setup differently from classrooms for 5 to 6 years old. The aged 3 to 4 learning will involve more hands-on activities before moving to more formal learning in the next two years.
Kindergarten classes are the first opportunities for a child to learn in a structured environment. A solid foundation from the beginning only promotes love for learning and interest in the world around them. Kindie World’s curriculum includes the Thematic Learning Approach and Play-Based Learning, making learning an enriching and fun experience for all our students.