Introduction
Research suggests that “children’s brains need to be immersed in real-life, hands-on, and meaningful learning experiences”; play is often considered to fall under this definition (Rhsuton 2011, p. 89). Play is an integral component of early childhood education, being known to play a significant role in childhood development in social, physical, cognitive and emotional respects (Gestwicki, 2009). Children are said to gain lifelong benefits from play, including healthy brain development, social and emotional ties to others, and promoting physical activity (Milteer, Ginsburg and Mulligan, 2012). This is particularly true of children in low income families and neighborhoods, as play is one of the few outlets for them to cultivate these skills (Bulotsky-Shearer et al., 2012). To that end, it must be said that a proper understanding of play can help educators further improve their curricula and create more positive, productive and effective environments for child learning.
There are many different definitions of play, all depending on whatever perspectives are being considered, the tools for play at the disposal of the theorist or subject, etc. The introduction and advancement of technology such as computers, smartphones and tablets in the classroom further complicates a definition of play, as it expands the possibilities of play and the ability to connect objectives with modes of play (Gestwicki, 2009). As a result, the need for a comprehensive definition of play is clear – by understanding what play is, we as educators can better understand how to utilize it as a tool or resource in the field of early education curricula.
In order to solidify the direction of this research, the research question must be comprehensive in its query. Therefore, we offer the simple research question: “What is play?” The goal of this research is to achieve a comprehensive definition of play that covers the vast majority of the approaches given and discovered in the research. Presentation of Findings
Having conducted a literature review and analysis of a great deal of recent scholarly research from reputable educators and researchers, several conclusions about play have been reached. First, play is something with intrinsic motivation – to engage in play is to participate in spontaneous activity that is desired and largely initiated by the player (Gestwicki, 2009). An individual must desire to play in an innate manner, especially when it comes to players in early childhood (Ellison, 2012). Play involves a degree of pretend and imagination, players acting in symbolic ways to their surroundings (Gestwicki, 2009). For example, when a child plays ‘house,’ they must pretend the room they are in, or some invisibly-defined room within that room, is a house – these are elements of roleplay and fantasy that require imagination to perform. Finally, play is “process-oriented rather than product-oriented” (Gestwicki 2009, p. 33). In essence, the goal is on the means rather than the end – when playing, there is no strict requirement to ‘win,’ merely to enjoy play. The play itself is a priori important, regardless of the outcome of play (Ellison, 2012).
Play itself can be categorized in three ways – functional, symbolic, and rule-based play (Gestwicki, 2009). With functional play, most common in early children, the emphasis is on practicing motor skills – completing puzzles, climbing, moving toys back and forth, etc. – as a physical exercise rather than a mental one (Gestwicki, 2009). Symbolic play is the aforementioned ‘house’ play, roleplaying or constructing things to make something else or enact a scenario of some kind. Rule-based games are the more traditional-based games, like board games or quizzes – in order to play these games, children must tacitly accept the rules and all agree to play by them. While this is not required for play in general, this is a type of play in which rules are permitted (Gestwicki, 2009).
Keeping these varying aspects of play in mind, as well as the modes of play that are possible, the answer to the research question must be to define play as “an activity or series of activities in which one or more individuals are intrinsically motivated to use physical, social, emotional or cognitive skills to engage in process-oriented, creative behavior that is functional, symbolic or rules-based.” While there are likely modes of play that are somehow not covered in this definition, it still allows for a broad variety of activities to be covered, and can help guide early childhood educators in framing play towards an education framework (Lifter et al., 2011). Application
Given this proposed definition for play, there are many ways in which this conceptualization can be applied to early childhood education and early learning. For one thing, I believe that this definition can be used to increase the perceived importance of play among educators and colleagues (Ellison, 2012). Furthermore, this definition places an emphasis on the process of learning rather than the product of learning; emphasizing the importance of play permits the ability to offer healthy, open-ended avenues that focus on the activity itself rather than the outcome.
In terms of actually crafting play for students in early learning, this makes it important to understand the type of play that is being created (rule-based, functional, symbolic). Different age groups and skills work better with different types of play. Another application is the encouragement of open-ended play that gives the children freedom to follow their intrinsic motivation to play; if this is not cultivated, play will be ineffective, as it becomes homework or a chore to perform. Educators must find ways to facilitate play in a way that allows the children to come up with the desire to play themselves, and guide it in a manner that reflects comfort and learning (Lifter et al., 2011). When it comes to the burgeoning area of technology, games and activities on the computer would absolutely fall under these definitions of play if they follow the intrinsic, process-oriented aspects previously outlined; to that end, creation of electronic games in early learning should also keep these rules in mind (Martin, Morgan and Rukobo, 2014). Summary
Based on the research and reasoning provided in this paper, play has been successfully defined as “an activity or series of activities in which one or more individuals are intrinsically motivated to use physical, social, emotional or cognitive skills to engage in process-oriented, creative behavior that is functional, symbolic or rules-based.” Applications of this definition by early childhood educators will allow for the possibility of more symbolic and open-ended play, a greater understanding of the benefits of play, and the wide variety of uses play can have as teaching tools to foster early development of essential skills. Education technology geared toward early childhood education should also keep these aspects of play in mind to provide more effective outcomes (Couse and Chen, 2010).
References
Bulotsky‐Shearer, R. J., Manz, P. H., Mendez, J. L., McWayne, C. M., Sekino, Y., & Fantuzzo,
J. W. (2012). Peer Play Interactions and Readiness to Learn: A Protective Influence for African American Preschool Children From Low‐Income Households. Child Development Perspectives, 6(3), 225-231.
Couse, L. J., & Chen, D. W. (2010). A Tablet Computer for Young Children? Exploring Its
Viability for Early Childhood Education. Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 43(1).
Ellison, C. R. (2012). The Importance of Play in Early Childhood Education.
Gestwicki, C. (2013). Developmentally appropriate practice: Curriculum and development in
early education. Cengage Learning.
Goldstein, J. H. (2013). Technology and play. Scholarpedia, 8(2), 30434.
Lifter, K., Foster-Sanda, S., Arzamarski, C., Briesch, J., & McClure, E. (2011). Overview of
play: Its uses and importance in early intervention/early childhood special education. Infants & Young Children, 24(3), 225-245.
Martin, E., Morgan, M. C., & Rukobo, E. (2014). Play-Based Technology Platforms and Early
Learners.
Milteer, R. M., Ginsburg, K. R., Mulligan, D. A., Ameenuddin, N., Brown, A., Christakis, D. A.,
& Swanson, W. S. (2012). The importance of play in promoting healthy child development and maintaining strong parent-child bond: focus on children in poverty. Pediatrics, 129(1), e204-e213.
Rushton, S. (2011). Neuroscience, Early Childhood Education and Play: We are Doing it
Right!. Early Childhood Education Journal, 39(2), 89-94.
Sherwood, S. A. S. (2012). Play: a study of preservice teachers' beliefs about a complex element
of early childhood education.
