Research that Counts (Susan Ohanian Speaks Out)

Putting the Play Back in Kindergarten

Susan Notes:

I received these two notes within half an hour of each other. I couldn't answer the first because it's a phony e-mail address. Funny thing: people who write to say something negative rarely give a legitimate address.

from Meridith Green mgreen@nwu.edu: Why do you have this website? It must be easy to find someone's article to publish and write a sentence or two about it. Why don't you write about your own stuff? I just don't understand.

On the other hand, people who write with genuine concern, often feel so intimidated they ask me to withhold their names. I know this person's legitimate address, and I post my answer below, hoping it might be useful to some other kindergarten teachers.

from anonymous: I am currently being harassed by my principal in regards to play in kindergarten. (He wants to do away with it!) We have already limited it to the last 30 minutes of the full-day kindergarten and have to call it plan-do-review to provide some "structure" and he wants to reduce (or cancel) it even more. Can you share with me any research-based articles, books, websites or otherwise that might help back me up in the anti-play fight (or just point me in the right direction)?

Greatly appreciated and keep up the fight! Dear Kindergarten Teacher,

Please know how angry your principal's ill-informed view makes me. I've gathered together a few resources that I hope will help.

Here's a manifesto on play from a group in Britain.

http://www.ncb.org.uk/resources/cpc_policy_charter.pdf This strong position paper from the Association for Childhood Education International cites research. http://www.acei.org/playpaper.htm

This Canadian document speaks directly about kindergarten play.

http://www.sasked.gov.sk.ca/docs/kindergarten/kindplay.html

Do you know The Block Book, Elisabeth S. Hirsch editor?

Published by the National Association for the Education of Young Children, this book is a treasure. It offers a compilation of the practical and theoretical meanings of block play in early childhood and elementary school curriculum. I have yellow tags throughout, marking great quotes. Here's one important passage:

The child needs an autonomous and active role in the learning process.

Play is the process by which the child's experience is expressed and organized. Play is enriched as further experience including primary and vicarious information becomes available.

Development of play requires adaptable materials which can serve fantasy as well as reality experience.

Blocks offer an almost infinite variety of expressive opportunity from floor patterns or designs to veritable engineering feats of bridge building. But blocks remain a means rather than an end in the learning process.

Children can achieve true mastery of adaptable materials in their own terms and know the gratification of competence at their level of maturity without dependence upon adult judgment of a given product.

The teaching role becomes complementary to the process--providing, enriching, leading on to further experience.

Beyond any material lies the need for adult understanding of the child's maturity level and growth, which becomes the base line upon which materials and experience are provided.

The National Association for the Education of Young Children offers a wealth of resources. Here are a few:

Chopsticks and Counting Chips

Preschool-Academics or Play? also speaks to kdg issue.

Top 10 Signs of a Good Kindergarten Classroom

Here's a bibliography that might be helpful:

Developmentally Appropriate Practice in Early Childhood Programs Serving Children from Birth through Age 8

Take a look at The American Association for the Child's Right to Play

Here's their (strong) position statement.

THE IPA DECLARATION oF A CHILD'S RIGHT TO PLAY WHAT IS PLAY? * CHILDREN are the foundation of the world's future. * CHILDREN have played at all times throughout history and in all cultures. * PLAY, along with the basic needs of nutrition, health, shelter and education, is vital to develop the potential of all children. * PLAY is communication and expression, combining thought and action; it gives satisfaction and a feeling of achievement. * PLAY is instinctive, voluntary, and spontaneous. * PLAY helps children develop physically, mentally, emotionally and socially. * PLAY is a means of learning to live, not a mere passing of time.

Here's research on the importance of recess http://www.ipausa.org/recessresearch.html

References
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Christie, J. (2001). Play as a learning medium. In S. Reifel (Ed.), Theory in context and out (Vol. 3, pp. 358-365). Westport, CT: Ablex.

Clawson, M. (2002). Play of language: Minority children in an early childhood setting. In J. L. Roopnarine (Ed.), Conceptual, social-cognitive, and contextual issues in the fields of play (Vol. 4, pp. 93-116). Westport, CT: Ablex.

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— Susan Ohanian
Response to e-mail

INDEX OF RESEARCH THAT COUNTS