Play is an important part of a child’s physical, mental and educational development. But there are many factors that can hinder how a child play or if a child plays at all. These factors can include anything from gender to socioeconomic status to disabilities. Each of these can have a large impact on a child and can affect them in so many ways. But no matter what the situation is every child should get every opportunity to play.
The social norm dealing with play and gender is that boys play with trucks, cars, and balls and girls play with dolls, play dress up, and play in the kitchen area. With these social pressures children can lack the self-esteem they need to be successful in their lives in and out of school. By the age of three children feel deemed to play with gender appropriate toys. Gender greatly affects how children learn through play. Research has shown that boys and girls play quite differently. Boys are more likely to play more actively, while girls tend to play more sedentary. These social pressures are affecting how children learn and play. Constructivist play (ex. building with blocks) is extremely important for developing spatial awareness and number concepts. But when young boys and girls are taught that playing with blocks is for boys, the young girls are missing out on an opportunity to learn. This creates gender separation and affects how boys and girls learn. All children have the right to learn through play, whichever way that is possible for them, things like gender segregation should not put a road block between them and learning.
Another type of play that children engage in is role-play. Usually, the boys play the role of the masculine man and the girls play the role of the mother or wife. By playing these stereotypical roles, the children get the idea that women cannot be strong or do the things that men do and vice versa for the men. Through role playing children learn about themselves and how to act around others. When there are stereotypical characters, for example, the boy is playing the man who supports the girl who is playing the woman (wife), both characters are not getting the opportunity to interact as the opposite character and not learning about the man or woman and their characteristics.
Social skills are a large part of what children learn through play. Most children choose same-sex play partners during free play. There is more social interaction between play partners of the same sex. This can lead to passivity and withdrawal around the opposite sex. By choosing the same-sex partner children are not getting the opportunity to interact and learn from their opposite sex peers.
There are a few ways for teachers to deal with these stereotypes in their classrooms so that all children get the equal opportunity to learn that they deserve. First, reinforcing that boys and girls can do the same activities and showing evidence of it will really get the children to understand. Another way to help girls for example is to organize a kickball game for them to work on their gross motor skills.
With these stereotypes there are positive and negative affects that can hinder a child’s play. The positive affects are showing boys and girls that they can play together, there does not have to be any separation of genders in play. Another positive affect is the development of social skills with their peers. But along with positive affects there are negative affects. The negative affects of these stereotypes include boys and girls feeling pressured to play with the gender appropriate toys and feeling like they have to play the role of their gender in dramatic play areas. When playing children should feel comfortable playing with what is fun and enjoyable for them, there should be no restrictions because of gender.
Socioeconomic status plays a large role in how children learn through play. While children of higher SES are learning to develop and grow skills and attitudes that will be useful for the future, children of lower SES are learning the attitudes of poverty, failure, and neglect. Children from lower socioeconomic statuses have many barriers to overcome. Families with low SES do not have the appropriate resources to promote a child’s development and school readiness. Children of lower SES families are at greater risk for entering school unprepared compared to their peers. “Educational toys, games, and books may appear to be luxuries, and parents may not have the time, energy, or knowledge to find innovative and less-expensive ways to foster young children's development” (Socioeconomic Status, 2004, para. 3). Lower SES families do not have the resources or the means to be informed about or afford toys or games that can enhance their child’s education. Socioeconomic status can hinder or help a child develop and become educated. Children with higher SES come to school more prepared and ready to learn, while children of lower SES are unprepared, not knowing what to expect.
To be honest, families of lower SES cannot afford toys that are educational for their children, therefore leaving them behind their peers. These children come to school not prepared to interact with children and toys. This is because parents are not involved in playing with their children, instead they are working to make ends meat. Whereas, children with higher SES interact with their parents. This interaction creates a learning environment where children are able to learn from the others around them. Without this interaction these children are unaware of how to interact and play with other people. Parents play a big role in how children learn and play by encouraging them to explore the things around them.
Children of lower socioeconomic status families are not aware of their situations and have all the potential in the world. They believe in themselves and think they are capable of anything they set their minds to. As these children get older they lose that confidence in themselves and begin to realize the situations they are in. Therefore, teachers should give all their students every opportunity to play. Play affects how a child interacts with other children, how they read and write, and their math and science skills. If the parent is unable to play with their child at home then the child should be able to come to school knowing they will be able to play and learn at the same time.
The Learning to Play Program is a program for children ages birth to 12 years of age living in poverty. This program gives children “the opportunity to participate in our society and develop the attitudes and skills that will enable them to change their futures” (Family Focus, 2008, para. 4). Learning to Play program gives families and their children financial aid to participate in extracurricular activities including sports, camps, excursions, and after school learning activities. This program is a great way for children to get out and be active and play with other children their age, without their parents having to worry if they are safe or worry about money issues. Family Focus USA is looking to break the cycle of poverty through creating new attitudes and beliefs in the children and adults that are members.
Most people think that to make a difference you need to go to a Third World country. But look right in our own backyards and there are plenty of children that need our help. By helping the assumptions that everyone has about families of lower SES go away and you see that these families just need some guidance. When these assumptions go away there is a whole new door opened for learning opportunities. Just because you think they don’t have the tools and resources to teach their children, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t. Every child deserves the right to a great education through play. Even if they don’t know how to play, teach them!
A disability can affect how a child plays, what kind of play he/she is engaged in, and the child’s ability to use play as a way to gain knowledge. A disability can affect play in so many different ways. First, a child can have a physical disability where they are confined to a wheelchair and are not able to reach down and touch objects on the ground. This can affect play because the child is not going to be able to have the same experiences as the other children in the classroom. A teacher can easily fix this by moving objects that are lower to the ground to the height or in reach of the child in the wheelchair. Adaptations to things in the classroom must be done to ensure proper learning through play. Another type of disability is cognitive. With this type of disability a child might need extra time to learn play skills before they actually play with other children. Exploratory play is a way that children with a cognitive disability engage in play. Communication disabilities are another type of disability that can affect play. Here the child may be less apt to initiate play with peers and can be hard to understand. A communication disability can have some affects that can be hurtful to the child. A peer may say that they do not want to play with them because they are not able to understand the child. The child with the communication disability would never learn social skills or how to interact with other children if this was happening.
Another way that disabilities affect play is by social interactions with typical peers. Social skills are an important part of play and are developed when children interact with one another. But a disability can really affect how a child interacts with another child. A child with a disability can lack self-esteem and self-confidence and not know how to interact with others. But, when children with disabilities are included in play with typical children they are able to interact with others and see how typical children learn through play. Interactions with typical children will improve their communication and social and gross motor skills. Play affects a child with disabilities in a good way by promoting the environment to learn new skills.
Also, play can help a child with a disability in so many other ways other than just social skills. Play can help them become physically stronger by providing therapuetical services to the child. Naturally, play introduces language development. Language is a product that comes from different forms of play. Teachers need to provide play experiences that promote emergent literacy because children with disabilities are less likely to have less stimulating literacy experiences at home or in preschool. Play provides children with the opportunity to interact with print material, see others interact with print material, and develop an awareness of the language around them.
To get children with disabilities involved in play the teacher can incorporate three types of play. These types of play are an individual experiencing an activity on their own, an individual experiencing an activity with others, and an individual experiencing an activity related to the equipment. These types of play can be easily implemented within the classroom and outside on the playground. Most people think that children with disabilities do not play or play differently than their peers. But this is not true, children with disabilities love to play just as much as any other child but there are so many restrictions. For example, playgrounds are not designed for wheelchairs. There are raised edges so wheelchairs are not able to get onto the playground. This can be frustrating to the child because they have every right to play like their peers.
So many negative things can affect a child’s life, like socioeconomic status, gender stereotypes, and disabilities. But teachers, parents, and others have the ability to make a child’s learning experience a positive one. Teachers must get past the stereotypes and find a way for all children to be able to play in their classroom. This quote by Plato “You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation” basically sums up the importance of play in a child’s life.
Works Cited
Bigler, R., Catherwoord, D., & Green, V. (2004). The variability and flexibility of gender-typed toy play: a close look at children's behavioral responses to counterstereotypic models. Journal of Research. Retrieved November 4, 2008, from http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2294/is_51/ai_n9484001
Family Focus United States of America. (2006). Learning to Play. Retrieved November 18, 2008, from http://www.familyfocususa.org/learntoplay.html
Ferguson, C., & Dettore, E. (2007). To Play or Not to Play is it Really a Question?. Maryland: Association for Childhood Education International.
Nepple, T. & Murray A. (1997). Social dominance and play patterns among
preschoolers: gender comparisons. Journal of Research. Retrieved November 4, 2008, from http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2294/is_n5-6_v36/ai_19586657
Scarlett, G., Naudeau, S., Salonius-Pasternak, D., & Ponte, I. (2005). Children’s Play. Thousand Oaks: SAGE Publications.
Socioeconomic Status (2004). Retrieved November 5, 2008, from http://www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issues/students/earlycld/ea7lk5.htm
Thorne, B. (1993). Gender Play: Girls and Boys in School. Retrieved November 4, 2008, from http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=583834
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
