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Megan LentzIntermediate CompositionProfessor SkutarOctober 20, 2016The Importance of Play in Early Childhood EducationAbstractMany people believe that play is a recreational activity for enjoyment, but with the right techniques play can have a purpose. There is a common debate in early childhood about play-based curriculum and core based curriculum. In this essay I will explain why play is so important to young children and why it should be included in early childhood education. Many people in the general public disagree and think the focus in school should be on core curriculum activities like mathematics, science, reading and writing. However, it is evident that play is very beneficial to promoting learning in young children as well being an aid in improving their development. After a lot of research and the consideration of both sides of this discussion, I can conclude and provide evidence that play is useful for young children and should be used to help them grow. Key Words: Play, Early Childhood Education, Child Development, Play-based Curriculum. Proposal Schools and teachers are complaining about there not being enough time in the day for the core curriculum material and think the best solution is to cut out things like music, art, gym, and recess, out of their daily schedules. They believe these classes take away from the children’s time to learn. However, these classes are just as important as the core classes and help children develop and expand their knowledge. In music classes children are required to use a lot of thinking. They have to learn lyrics to songs, as well as the proper tune to sing them in, or they have to recognize the sounds of instruments and when to play a certain note. These classes use motor skills and critical thinking. For example, “Learning the specifics of a piece of music, such as notes, rhythms, and pedaling, involves declarative memory, while knowing how to play the music is a type of procedural memory. Since learning a piece is based on declarative memory, it is also linked with cognitive abilities” (Carmichael). Then one must use their hands or mouth to produce that music on the instrument. In art classes children use their own creativity to express their knowledge. Artwork can express math concepts, such as, vertical and parallel lines, all the way to real world concepts like all people wear clothes. These classes use motor skills, critical thinking skills, and allow the children to be in charge of the final product. Gym and recess provide children with open ended play where children can choose what they want to and have the chance to interact with others. This broadens children’s use of language, and social development. It also provides a child with the chance to let out energy and allow them to focus on the core curriculum afterwards.During play activities children get the opportunity to explore things on their own and get to experience hands on learning. This idea of hands on learning aids the child in fine-motor development, because they use their parts of their body to explore. Play is so natural to young children so the learning is unnoticed to the child. This gives the child intrinsic motivation to learn through play. In general play can help a child’s cognitive, physical, and social development, as well as, give them problem solving skills that will help them in the real world. For example, “Play is essential to the social, emotional, cognitive, and physical wellbeing of children beginning in early childhood. It is a natural tool for children to develop resiliency as they learn to cooperate, overcome challenges, and negotiate with others” (Milter and Ginsburg). This is why play should be used alongside core curriculum in early childhood education. Children should experience free play as well as guided play in throughout the typical school day in order to broaden their development to the fullest potential.Annotated BibliographyCarmichael, Amy. "Learning to Play: Cognitive and Physical Development of Children and the Requirements of Playing the Piano."?Musical Offerings, vol. 5, no. 1, 2014., pp. 15-36doi:10.15385/jmo.2014.5.1.2.This article provides information about how playing the piano can aid in their cognitive and physical development of children. I can use this article to provide reasoning for my belief that music classes should not be the classes that get taken out of schools when there are budget cuts.Chigeza, Philemon, et al. "Kindergarten Children Demonstrating Numeracy Concepts through Drawings and Explanations: Intentional Teaching within Play-Based Learning."?Australian Journal of Teacher Education (Online), vol. 41, no. 5, 2016., pp. 65-77doi:10.14221/ajte.2016v41n5.5.This article provides examples of how children can show what they know through their artwork. I can use examples from this to back my belief that art promotes learning and children to need art classes in their schedules.Harte, H. (2016, October 14). Email interview.I interviewed my professor of the “Child Guided Play” class I am in the semester. She has taught early childhood education for 13 years and expressed her views on play, which happen to be similar to mine. I can use this interview to show that others, who are knowledgeable about play and education, agree with my argument. Jones, Elizabeth, and Gretchen Reynolds.?The Play's the Thing: Teachers' Roles in Children's Play, Teachers College Press, New York, 2011.This is the textbook I use for my “Child guided Play” class which contains a ton of useful information about play and how to use it in the classroom. I can use this to provide my audience with different ways they can incorporate play into classroom schedules and explain how this will benefit children. Lifter, Karin, et al. "Overview of Play: Its Uses and Importance in Early intervention/early Childhood Special Education."?Infants and Young Children, vol. 24, no. 3, 2011., pp. 225-245doi:10.1097/IYC.0b013e31821e995c.Lifter’s scholarly article provides a good background knowledge of play and the controversies of it, as well as how it can be useful to special education purposes. I can use this article to give my audience proper knowledge about play and inform them how play observations can show delays in children’s development. The article provides wonderful examples of both.Milteer, Regina M., et al. "The Importance of Play in Promoting Healthy Child Development and Maintaining Strong Parent-Child Bond: Focus on Children in Poverty."?Pediatrics, vol. 129, no. 1, 2012., pp. e204-e213doi:10.1542/peds.2011-2953.This is a pediatrics magazine article that explains how important play is in order for a child to have healthy development, and also factors in the home life that can get in the way of children’s play time. This can back my belief about play needing to be used in early childhood schools, because some children lack at home access to it.Moore, Lisa.?Playground Play: Educational and Inclusive, vol. 41, EP Global Communications Inc, Boston, 2011.This article provides information about recess time making all children feel included. Outside there are a lot of freedoms and children who are behind the normal child developmentally can benefit from playing outside. I can use this article to explain how outside time is useful for every child and that it’s important in inclusive classrooms too.National Association of Early Childhood Specialists in State Departments of Education. Recess and the Importance of Play. A Position Statement on Young Children and Recess, NAECS/SDE, Center for At-Risk Education, Colorado State Department of Education, 2001.This article provides information about how recess is a necessity in early childhood education. I can use this article to back my belief about recess facilitating learning and important skills.O'Neill, Barbara E. "Improvisational Play Interventions: Fostering Social-Emotional Development in Inclusive Classrooms."?YC Young Children, vol. 68, no. 3, 2013., pp. 62.This is a study where a teacher studied a child who was developmentally behind all year long and shows the progress he has made through the way he played. This informs people that play can be observed and it can showcase a child’s development. I can use this article to show how play doesn’t have to be recreational, it can have a purpose and the child’s progress can be seen.Wood, Elizabeth A. "Free Choice and Free Play in Early Childhood Education: Troubling the Discourse."?International Journal of Early Years Education, vol. 22, no. 1, 2014., pp. 4-18doi:10.1080/09669760.2013.830562.Wood’s expresses the importance of play, but also mentions the difficulties you might come across when trying to integrate it into a classroom. I can use this article to inform the audience that I know it is difficult to do sometimes, but I can come back with ways to get past the difficulties. ................
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