Sponsored by Yew Chung International School of Beijing: http://www.ycis-bj.com/ Learning through play - how does it really work? Specific areas of a child's skills, knowledge and life that are improved by play-based learning programmes taught in school.

1. PLAY-BASED LEARNING: BENEFITS AND
HOW IT WORKS

2. Play-based learning provides ‘a context for learning
through which children organise and make sense of their
social worlds, as they engage actively with people,
objects and representations’
-Australia’s Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations

3. Learning Through Play
What areas of learning does play improve?
Cognitive and creativity
Social
Well-being
Physical coordination
What types of play help improve these areas of learning?
Music and Dance Arts and Crafts Dramatic Play Outdoor Play Constructive Play
“Play opens the windows of learning in a child’s life and acquaints him or her with movement,
observation, relationships, emotions and much more.”* Essentially this means that when a child is
playing, with either parents, friends or toys, they are engaging in learning about themselves, those
around them, and their environment. To understand, let’s look at:
*Sean Brotherson

4. Improves: Cognitive and Creativity
Basic mathematical, scientific and
thinking skills are learned by
experimenting with people and
objects around children. For
example:
Building a block tower
can help children
recognise problems and
think about how to solve
them properly
Floating (and sinking)
toys in water helps
children understand
buoyancy
Determining how to share
toys evenly between a
group helps children learn
basic mathematics
The development of cognitive
skills, including dispositions for
learning (such as curiosity and
persistence), memory and
thinking skills, and language and
literacy skills, have strong links
to play.* Additionally, play
nurtures creativity, imagination,
strategies for problem solving
and the expansion of a child’s
critical divergent thought
process.
*Bodrova & Leong

5. Improves: Social Skills
Research shows that playing with others assists
children in building positive relationships through
understanding proper social skills.
Children build empathy as they become more aware
of their own and others’ emotions, motivations and
desires.
As children get better at communicating
and negotiating, it’s easier for them to
bond with others because they create
understanding and trust.
Communication skills are
improved, as children can use
new words to tell stories and
voice their opinions.
Negotiation and problem solving
are learned through improved
empathy.

6. Improves: Well-being
Well-being has to do
with the mental
state of your child,
which is essential as
a child looks to
become more
independent and
happier
• Play helps children to express and work
through emotions and experiences
• By playing and making mistakes, children
learn how to have a good sense of humour
• By engaging in solo-play, children learn
that individual happiness can be created
• Play causes a mix of endorphins that lifts
spirits and distracts children from pain,
fear, and other burdens

7. Improves: Physical Coordination
Playing
Means
Children
Are:
• Running
• Jumping
• Climbing
• Picking up/carrying
objects
• Swimming
• Kicking and throwing
Health
Benefits
• Improved
metabolism
• Increased energy
expenditures
Learned
Skills
• Eye-hand
coordination
• Large muscular
skills (running, etc.)
• Small muscular
skills (picking up a
ball, etc.)

8. Types: Music and Dance
Tapping rhythms and other
nursery rhymes helps develop
rhythm, language understanding,
and tones.
Partner dancing helps children
learn about matching movements
to music and coordinating with
another person.
Dancing spontaneously helps
children increase their
imagination, express their
emotions, and explore space in 3
dimensions.
Playing a musical instrument
helps children to use their senses
to understand an object, by
responding to what they hear and
see.

9. Types: Arts and Crafts
Creating pictures and
sculptures helps children to
learn about space, shapes,
area and symmetry through
creative and critical thinking
Painting allows children to use
a new artistic medium, which
helps them to explore their
imagination and intuition with
new materials.
Making crafts teaches children
aspects of connecting parts
together and getting the right
information from the instructor
or instructions.

10. Types: Dramatic Play
Giving a child a specific role
to perform will encourage
recalling and applying his or
her own experiences to that
given point in time.
By creating a fake persona
that the child must play, you
are allowing him or her to
use literary and
communicative skills that
he or she might not usually
use in everyday life.
Using props while engaging
in dramatic play allows
children to further identify
with their assigned role, as
well as learn about
interacting with other
characters and objects with
that role.

11. Types: Outdoor Play
Sand Play
• Giving children free-
range in a sandbox will
allow them to learn the
concept of area, as well
as how they personally
can affect that area
• When building sand
castles, the social
aspects of sharing and
cooperation are
incorporated
Water Play
• Builds concentration as
children look to pour
water from container to
container
• Permits children to learn
for themselves the
therapeutic properties
that water has
Air Play
• Flying a kite or holding a
hand-held windmill can
show children the effect
that wind has on objects,
and how the strength of
the wind effects them
• By trying to run or jump
on a windy day, children
can learn about the
power of air and how it
creates resistance
Photo:"HappyHolidayOnTheBeach"by
supakitmod
Photo:"ChildrenToys"byartur84

12. Type: Construction Play
Independent Collaboration
Develops fine motor skills as
children pass to others, while
also pushing, pulling, holding,
connecting and placing objects
where they are needed
Forces children to learn to take
turns and share equipment
when building up collaborative
projects
Creates confidence in children
when they are able to make
their own structures.
Builds concentration as
children focus on what part of
a structure needs to be
changed and rebuilt.

13. Making Time for Play
Scheduling
Play Time!
Playing is one of the
best (and most fun)
ways for children to
learn, so parents
should include it in their
child’s schedule
Play helps learning at
any age, which means
playing with your child
can actually help you
learn new concepts
and lessons
Schools also need to
develop an environment in
which children can
positively learn through
play
At Yew Chung International
School, children are
encouraged to actively
participate, investigate and
experiment to find out about
the world in which they live