Having different areas in the classroom that support and engage children in meaningful play is crucial. I strongly believe that everything that surrounds children creates an impact on their learning. When giving resources that have a pre-determined outcome, the children cannot show their unique perspective. When set effectively, the classroom can be considered as the third teacher.
I will be showing you some areas in my classroom which I find the most effective to expand the children’s overall learning. My curious bunch love these areas and I could leave them to play and explore all day if I wanted to. It is important to always change and adjust these areas according to projects, events, holidays etc. This allows the children to keep on expanding their thinking and learning.
Socio Dramatic Play Area
This ought to be my favourite area out of all. I enjoy putting it together just as much as the children love playing in it. It allows me to think outside the box and use my creativity and arts to create a new ‘world’ in the classroom.
This right here is a perfect example! Let me explain … I am an adult and still love and yearn to have the opportunity to play with different materials in order to create something new. Now, imagine a three year old child whose mind is like a sponge, absorbing huge amount of information from the environment. To play and explore is a child’s right and a must, as play pulls together the overall holistic development of a child.
Dramatic play is a form of symbolic play where the child pretends to take a role. When this imaginative play is shared with others it becomes socio dramatic play. This form of play is very powerful!
I like to change this area according to the project the children are investigating at that moment. I also like to involve the children as much as possible in the process.
Let’s have a look at this area through the years …
Hopefully I will write an in depth post just on Socio dramatic play, as all there is to say about it is endless.
Loose Parts Area
Providing the children with diverse material is very important. This type of play allows the children to expand their thinking and creativity. The child will most often create a scenario or image in their mind and will try to recreate it. It is important to understand that each child has a unique perspective. Thus, what a child might see as a boat, another might see as a castle.
When children are playing, they are using all their senses to explore and investigate. Thus, giving highly sensory materials is very important. By using diverse materials such as wood, rocks, pinecones and corks, the children will explore their sense of touch which activates different parts of the brain.
Playing with loose parts means that there is no pre-determined outcome. In other words it opens up a whole new world without restrictions as the children create what they imagine.
Let’s have a look at this area…
Sensory Area
Sensory play is a form of play which has great benefits for children’s development. As said before children learn best when they engage their senses. Sensory play can be very fun and engaging for young learners.
I think most teachers can agree that most activities for children tend to be very expensive. This area is one which has great potential for children’s development and learning without breaking the bank. This year one of my sensory bins consisted of coloured rice and I found a way to make it work for each of the projects done in class. All I did was have a look at what I already had in the classroom which was related to the topic and added it in.
Let me show you …
The classroom should be a place where the children are free to roam around and explore and investigate their questions. The classroom shouldn’t be a reflection of what the educator wants the children to do. However, a classroom should belong 100% to the children.
Hope you enjoyed having a look at my classroom and that this post was in some way helpful for you.
Thank you for reading … see you next time!
Comments