Transcript Learning Through Play - University at Buffalo

Affording Children
Access to Play
Through
Assistive
Technology
Let’s Play! Projects
University at Buffalo
Center for Assistive Technology
Website: http://letsplay.buffalo.edu
Susan Mistrett
[email protected]
Let’s Play! Projects
• US Dept of Education funding since 1995
• Focus on play needs of families with children
with disabilities
• Provide research & education to parents,
caregivers and professionals who work with
these families
• Collaborate with play organizations + toy
manufacturers to design toys with Universal
Design features
All About Play today…
• Impact of play on development
• Role of play in special needs programs
• Designing play spaces & toys for ALL
children
• Assistive technology supports: what to
look for
• Selecting and adapting toys
• Extending play opportunities
Let’s Play! Projects
• US Dept of Education funding since 1995
• Projects focus on play needs of families with
children with disabilities
• Projects provide research & education to
parents, caregivers and professionals who
work with these families
• Collaborate with toy manufacturers/ vendors
to utilize universal design features
What is Play?
•
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•
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It’s like a slinky…
It morphs and constantly changes
There is no “right” way to do it
It becomes, evolves, builds on
experiences
• Defines and is defined by “self”
• Life-long
When Children Play, They.....
• are intrinsically
motivated
• are active
• make play up as they
go along
• start and stop when
they want to
• they have fun!!!!!!!!
When Children Work, They May Not..
• be intrinsically
motivated
• be active
• be making it up as
they go along
• start and stop when
they want to
• have fun!!!!!!!!
Play is the work
of children
Why Focus on Play?
Play Influences Development
• Physical
• Language
• Social
• Cognition
• Emotional
• Imagination
Play is what kids do…..
• Children learn through play - the
primary activity for healthy
development of young children.
• All the skills children need originate
from play: literacy, creativity, selfesteem, mathematical reasoning &
social skills.
When I am building + sorting…
• I learn about height,
length, depth and
weight
• I learn to cooperate,
share, plan and
negotiate
•I experience symmetry,
balance and patterns
•I gain feelings of
competence
•I use my imagination
and creativity
When I Look at Books…
• I make friends with books; identify
favorites + familiar stories
• I learn that printed books have meaning
• I learn about other people and places
• I develop important reading and
listening skills with an adult
When I Play “Pretend”...
• I practice what I see and
hear; learn to understand and
master adult roles
• I practice math, social &
language skills
• I am organizing and using
ideas
• I symbolically use materials in
meaningful ways
How do we know….. theorists
• Jean Piaget- describes learning that
happens during play
– Play, Dreams and Imitation in Childhood
(1962)
• L.S. Vygotsky- children develop
cognitive abilities through social play
– Mind in Society (1978)
Play Benefits: What Research Says
• Cognitive potential/ability is reflected
through play
• Using imagination in pretend play
leads to improved school readiness
• Connections exist between play and
emergent literacy + language
• Play provides opportunities to negotiate
• Good players become good problemsolvers
• The more a child is spoken to, sung to,
read to, danced with, exercised, played
with, encouraged to explore in a safe
environment - the more the brain and
body will develop.
Play + Brain Development
• Brain development before the age of one year
is more rapid and extensive than previously
realised - the brain nearly triples in size within
the first year of life.
• Play appears to improve brain development
– Activity increases brain engagement
– Reinforces neural connections
– Decreases stress and reduces levels of cortisol
• Brain development is vulnerable to
environmental influences (nutrition + quality
of interaction, care and stimulation).
But… anti-play influences abound
• Working parents have less time and energy to
devote to fostering a playful childhood for their
children. (i.e. clean clothes!)
• Barriers to play include over-scheduling+ an
over-emphasis on early academic achievement
• Schools increasingly eliminate the "playful" part
school; curtailing recess, gym, sports, and arts.
Playing for Keeps 6/2003
• With parental safety concerns,
unsupervised outdoor play is restricted especially for young children.
– Not all kids have playgrounds in their
neighborhoods or homes with usable toys.
• Programs for children with disabilities undervalue the importance of play
• Cultural, socioeconomic and disability issues
threaten to create yet another generation of
adults who don't know how to play together.
Playing for Keeps 6/2003
Let’s Look at Play!
How to promote
successful play
opportunities
for ALL children
Is Play Important?
“When a child cannot play, we should be
as troubled as when he refuses to eat or
sleep”
(Hartley & Goldenson, 1963)
“Play is so integral to childhood that a child
who does not have opportunities to play
is cut off from a major portion of
childhood.”
(Musselwhite,1986)
Is Play the Same
for All Kids?
Play of Young Children with
Disabilities
• Use little language
• Play is less
sophisticated,
– less organized
• Engage in less group
play; play alone
more often
• Use toys in more
functional and
ritualistic ways;
– less pretending
• Often have low social
status; are perceived
as less appealing
play partners
(Linder, 1994)
Kids with disabilities may not
experience the same gains from
play if their play is limited.
How Do Play and Therapy or Education Fit
Together?
PLAY
Therapy or
Education
Uses of Play:
1. As a therapeutic/
educational modality
– Toys are used to
distract or motivate
Uses of Play:
2. To improve play skills
– Toys are selected to
develop specific
abilities
– Emphasis is on the
“right way” to play
Uses of Play:
3. To promote Playfulness
(A. Bundy)
Play characteristics such as
engagement, exuberance,
persistence, use of mischief,
pretense, initiating, sharing,
giving and responding to cues
- Emphasis on promoting
fantasy play
Balancing Intervention + Play
Intervention
PLAY
MAKE SURE there room for both in the day and
life of the child and his/her family!
A Mismatch???
• Play in the lives of
typically developing
children...
• Play in the lives of
– critical to development children with
disabilities...
– effects all growth
domains
– valued as the
“occupation of
childhood”
– used as a therapeutic/
educational modality
– seen to develop specific
skills
– rarely seen as an IFSP
outcome
What Does This Mean?
Kids with disabilities need
opportunities to play for the
sake of play.
Looking at Play
VIDEO
Allison and Dominic – at 3 years old
Is Play Happening?
• Intrinsically motivated?
• Active?
• Make play up as s/he goes along?
• Start and stop when s/he wants to?
• Having fun?
What We’ve Observed About
Play & Kids with Disabilities
• Kids perform
optimally when they
are playing
• A tendency towards
learned helplessness
is diminished
• Unforeseen outcomes • Supports should be
often emerge
considered at
“typical” ages –
don’t wait!
• The intervention of
an adult as an
initiator, modeler,
participant &
enhancer of play
repertoires may be
understated
• Encouraging early
access to play
empowers families
to see the “child
inside”
• Adaptations to play
materials and play
strategies are
necessary
• Inclusive play
opportunities benefit
kids + adults!
What Can Providers Do?
• Validate the importance of play
– Discuss development during play
– Give families “permission to play”
• Recognize + share positive play supports and
outcomes
• Incorporate play into your
services; suggest ways to
extend play
• Encourage more child and family play
http://letsplay.buffalo.edu
FREE Let’s Play! Products
• How We Play!
• Playing with
Switches
• Computer Play with
Young Children with
Disabilities
• Creating Play
Environments
• Let's Play Sheets
• A Guidebook for
Developing and
Maintaining a Play &
Assistive Technology
Lending Library
• Collection of Articles