People ask me, “What are the children learning? They are just playing….”
When parents are considering our Preschool for their children to attend we encourage them to read our blog post “What To Look For In A Preschool” The reason we do this is that we touch on the idea that kids learn when they have fun. In fact, without a doubt, we believe…Play is a child’s work. Creating an open-ended environment, where children feel they can choose without limitations, takes an eye to know what children are interested in and allows them to explore. Here are a few examples of what our children are learning:
Four Things Kids Learn When They Play
1. Easel Paint
When we easel paint we learn to develop eye-hand coordination, imagination, relationships to size and space, symmetry, and my ideas have value.
2. Dress Up
When I enjoy myself and have fun with dress-up I learn to be flexible in my thinking, to express myself with words, to try on different adult roles, to sort and organize, and improvise in a symbolic way to represent abstract thinking.
3. Play In The Sand
When I have fun in the sand I learn the concepts of color, size, volume, and shape, I learn to solve problems, how to negotiate with others, and to observe changes in matter.
4. Draw and Scribble
When I draw and scribble I learn to hold a pencil, hand eye coordination, concepts of color, shape, and to express myself with words when describing what I have drawn.
The Lean & Play List Goes On & On!
These activities go on and on, and with each one there is a skill set being acquired through play.
I have been defending play for 30 years and will continue to do so every day at La Canada Preschool…please consider coming to laugh and enjoy learning with us.