Play is satisfying and joyful experiences for children. Play allows children to make meaning of their world, develop new skills and absorb everything their learning environment has to offer. Children at play is a critical and useful time for teachers to observe. Observing children at play enables teachers to understand what a child can do, what developmental stage a child is currently at and it allows teacher to plan activities and lessons on how they can foster and scaffold children's learning and development.
Children construct knowledge through experiences they encounter with their environment and social surroundings:
Children construct knowledge through experiences they encounter with their environment and social surroundings:
- “The brain is constantly changing. How the brain is shaped in the early years will have an effect on how well the brain functions in later life. It grows as a result of learning-one synapses at a time” (Engaging Primary Learning Through Play, n.d.).
- •“Experiences change and shape the brain. Nourishing our brains through many varied interactions with people and things in our environment builds the foundation of life long learning” (Engaging Primary Learning Through Play, n.d.).
- •“Emotions have a profound effect on learning. When the learner feels safe, comfortable, and happy, learning occurs with ease. Tension, stress, and feeling of inadequacy inhibits learning” (Engaging Primary Learning Through Play, n.d.)