Listen to this 2021 episode of “Research on the Go” from Head Start Talks, a podcast that explores the latest research in infant-toddler development. The host and guest are both from the National Center on Early Childhood Development, Teaching, and Learning at the University of Washington.
In Creating Playful Learning Environments for Infants and Toddlers, they define play as, “a continuum of activities” that includes fun, choice-making, and no predetermined goal other than the joy of the play itself. They also note that play is very contextually dependent. Children play because they:
1. Want to,
2. Have positive feelings about it, and
3. Have flexibility to make their own choices.
Variations on play include “happy, smiley play” and “focused, concentrated play.” Some activities can be both, depending on the context, but not necessarily at the same time. They add that, “researchers have found that the main things that distinguish different kinds of play are who starts the play . . . and who directs the play as it’s going along.” In “free play,” the child is in charge of both those roles. In another context, the adult might be in charge of both, like a music or dance class, but the experience remains playful. “Guided play,” something used a great deal in early intervention, is a sort of hybrid where the adult organizes and initiates the play, but the child directs it. It’s “co-created.” All types of play are valid, important, and welcome.
Enjoy the podcast! Several other episodes can be found here. A transcript of this podcast is also available here.
The ICC-Recommended Early Start Personnel Manual (ESPM) describes core knowledge and role-specific competencies needed for early intervention service provision, incorporating current research and evidence in the field of early intervention. Click here to access the ESPM. Scroll down to find the ESPM entry.
This resource is related to the following ESPM knowledge-level competencies:
- Evaluation and Assessment (EA):
- EA2 (EIS): Knows the goals, benefits, and uses of assessment and observation.
- Individualized Family Service Plan Development and Review (IFSP-DR):
- IFSP-DR5 (EIS): Understands the rationale for the identification and selection of intervention strategies used in everyday routines, relationships, activities, places, and partnerships for early intervention activities (or justification of the extent to which some outcomes cannot be achieved in a natural environment).
- Individualized Family Service Plan Development and Review (IFSP-i):
- IFSP-i2 (EIS): Understands the individual nature of child learning styles and the importance of adapting intervention strategies.
- IFSP-i6 (EIS): Understands the need for developmentally appropriate strategies (for example, hands-on, experiential, child-centered, play-based activities within daily routines), adaptations, assistive technologies, and other supports that maximize the child’s learning opportunities.
- IFSP-i11 (EIS): Knows strategies that support parents in adapting the natural environment to meet infant/toddler developmental needs.