Best Practice

Keeping play alive in the classroom: Six approaches

Teaching and Learning
Play-based learning is often pushed out of the primary school classroom as children get older. But it has a role and can have impact. Emmanuel Awoyelu offers some ideas
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“We are never more fully alive, more completely ourselves, or more deeply engrossed in anything than when we are playing.”
Psychologist Charles Schaefer

 

One of the saddest sights to see as an educator is how play has lost its importance within our teaching and learning. When we think about our truly happiest moments, it is likely when we were engaged in some form of play.

Whether we are outdoors with the children in the garden or playing a competitive sport with friends, these are the times we learn the most about ourselves, the people around us, and the complexities of the world.

More importantly, perhaps, it is the element of fun that helps us to re-engage with either our work or our day-to-day activities.

I have worked in two all-through schools in my time and what stood out was the teaching and learning that took place in the early years. I once held the foolish perception that children didn’t “learn” much in the early years as they were “just playing”.

Of course, there is play – but the approach and execution are more nuanced. There is an under-appreciated skill in cultivating an environment where children can start to develop communication skills, their understanding of the world, personal and social emotional development, and literacy and numeracy skills, all in the context of their classrooms and outdoor space.

The important question is: How is this possible?

The short answer is: Through play.

 

Promoting play

The Department for Education’s statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage (DfE, 2023) emphasises the importance of play for children’s development:

“Play is essential for children’s development, building their confidence as they learn to explore, relate to others, set their own goals and solve problems. Children learn by leading their own play and by taking part in play which is guided by adults.

“Practitioners need to decide what they want children in their setting to learn and the most effective ways to teach it. Practitioners must stimulate children’s interests, responding to each child’s emerging needs and guiding their development through warm, positive interactions coupled with secure routines for play and learning.”

The following paragraph then advises practitioners to focus on the essential skills and knowledge needed for specific areas in preparation for year 1.

Interestingly, it does not explicitly recommend the continuation of play as a vital component in children’s learning.

If playing and exploring, active learning, creating and thinking critically are key components of children’s learning and development in their formative years, surely these principles should be implemented throughout all phases of school – or at the very least further into their primary education.

The natural inquiry process of play is evidenced in research and has been documented extensively. It points to learning through play as a promising pedagogy that is expansive in its aims and outcomes for learning (Marbina et al, 2011; Parker & Thomsen, 2019; Parker et al, 2022).

However, the lack of clarity about the role of learning through play is compounded by the pressure schools face to generate “evidence” about the effectiveness of instructional practice. This is typically focused on outcomes such as academic achievement or growth.

The idea of one of our roles being to prepare pupils for secondary education perhaps also inhibits any motivation to keep play alive for longer.

As such, this article aims to provide simple ways primary schools can incorporate play-based learning into their curriculum and teaching and learning.

 

1, Planning: Think like a child

As teacher, I think we all have an inner child. It is necessary to tap into this when we are teaching. In order for us to plan and deliver effective lessons, we must think like a child. We can do this by asking the following questions and looking through the lens of a child when doing so.

  • How can I engage them in their learning?
  • What would spark their interest?
  • What activities can be prepared for them to explore the concept independently?
  • What resources can be used?
  • Could we do this lesson outdoors?

 

2, Explore concepts

When planning lessons, think about the concepts that can be explored as opposed to a topic that can be taught.

For example, a topic you may typically teach is the Second World War in Britain, but potential concepts to explore could be War, Conflict, Colonialism, Empires.

The concepts allow you to make lines of enquiry and consider patterns and similarities between concepts. This creates opportunities for children to create their own questions and lines of inquiry, conduct research, debate, and explore these concepts in a multitude of ways.

 

3, Provide a provocation/stimulus for a lesson

I am a big believer in the concept of using a stimulus, where appropriate, that can draw pupils in. When you teach a lesson, consider a provocation that will evoke thoughtfulness, discussions and questions from your pupils.

As seen in early years practice, children learn through inquiry and discovery, but we have to set the stage for this by providing a provocation.

For example, at the start of a maths lesson show a picture of items from the shop and ask the pupils to consider what they all have in common.

A history lesson could start with a scene from a film before children are asked to consider what the themes are.

The main takeaway is engaging children using a stimulus that will provoke active learning.

 

4, Pupil agency

An important part of teaching is recognising when to give instruction and when to allow children to explore independently.

In the early years children often take control of their own learning, although we know that the activities they can choose from have been carefully planned.

The key is providing children the feeling of ownership over their own learning. This can be done by giving them options when it comes to an activity.

For example, in science, if pupils are exploring the concept of forces and motions, they can be given four different activities to choose from in their investigation.

Another example is using a scale to differentiate the level of difficulty of a task – for example, labelling tasks “mild”, “chili” and “extra hot”. The important thing here is children are being empowered and presented with opportunities to take charge of their own learning and to push themselves.

 

5, Story-telling

Everybody loves to hear a story. Stories capture the attention and imagination and form an important part of playful pedagogy. Here are some examples of how you can use story-telling in your lessons.

  • Use real-life stories that relate to a concept/conversation you are discussing. These are often spontaneous but can also be intentionally included. Children are curious and are invested in you as much as they are about the lesson. Share a story.
  • Use stories to teach concepts. Create scenarios and situations that include pupils in a story. For example, when I’m teaching maths and the focus is on word problems, I create scenarios or mini-stories that include the pupils’ names. This makes them feel involved and pupils can be really receptive to this.
  • Children love to role play and it can be done in most primary subjects. For example, if you are sharing a story of a particular event in time, select children to re-enact the scene as you tell the story. Or group children to perform pre-planned scenarios.

 

6, Competition and games

Add competition and games to lessons where possible. While the focus may not be on winners and losers, the element of a game or challenging activity can increase pupil engagement.

Research looking at the impact of competition suggests that the rush of dopamine that comes from competitiveness, even when it is low-stakes, can improve performance (DiMenichi & Tricomi, 2015).

The most important aspect of this is the opportunity for active learning and potential collaboration with peers. An example might be using a small competition at the start of the lesson – a maths lesson might kick-off with a game called Around the World where children have to compete with one another by answering questions.

One child stands behind the other who is seated and the person to answer the question first wins. If the child sitting down answers the question first, he replaces the person standing up. If the child standing answers the question first, he moves on to the next competitor.

 

7, Outdoor learning

Outdoor learning is something we see all the time in early years and again this is a practice that I think must be continued into key stage 1 and 2. Can teachers plan trips at the start of the year that are linked to units of inquiry and concepts you will be covering. This may include allotments, museums or a trip to the zoo.

We can also use our outdoor space and playground for learning opportunities. This can be easily executed for most subjects but particularly subjects like art, science and maths that can be related to images and objects outside.

 

Final thoughts

Ultimately, learning through play doesn’t require major policy change. Play-based pedagogy can continue after the early years with small changes to the way in which we view learning.

  • Emmanuel Awoyelu is a primary school teacher, SENCO and former assistant headteacher. He is currently working overseas as a specialist inclusion teacher in the UAE and has a wealth of experience supporting children from disadvantaged backgrounds. He developed the tutoring programme used in his previous school and has created similar tutoring models for his charity The Reach Out Project. Visit www.mannyawo.com or follow him on X (Twitter) @MannyAwo. Find his previous articles and podcast and webinar appearances for Headteacher Update via www.headteacher-update.com/authors/emmanuel-awoyelu 

 

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