“No… not like that,” she commands. In her mind, she lives in an organised world. I raise my eyebrows at her and smile. I like her and her organised ways. She widens her eyes then takes a handful of LEGO DUPLO bricks into her small cherub-caricature hands.

Every preschooler learns through play. There are so many ways to play.

Over the past few months, my almost three year old daughter, Miss K has displayed a big interest in constructing with LEGO DUPLO. She loves building at home and at daycare.

Here’s a snippet of documentation from her daycare: “This particular morning she sat down with Ms Preschool Teacher and started to construct. She kept building and building. “Look” she said to Ms Preschool Teacher. “It’s a tower,” she continued proudly and held up her tower so Ms Preschool Teacher could see. “So lovely,” Ms Preschool Teacher replied. Ms Preschool Teacher then began to ask questions about the colours that Miss K had been using. She was able to name all colours.

The documentation continues: In this experience Miss K demonstrated her creativity through construction of the tower. Through her sustained engagement we understand that she feels safe and supported- she feeling comfortable to explore for a longer amount of time. Furthermore, in the experience she used her fine motor skills and displayed her knowledge of colours.

Here, we see the beautiful embodiment of play-based learning. Rather than the teacher being the ‘expert’ who is required to fill children’s knowledge stores as if they are empty vessels, we see the child having the potential to learn complex concepts at any age.

LEGO DUPLO: So Many Ways to Play

Imagine my delight when we received a LEGO DUPLO Batcave Adventure Pack to review and give away! We’re big fans of LEGO DUPLO, and being parents who watch Comic Book Men, it’s not surprising that our children are relatively well versed in the Batman Universe. 

Build Stories & Make Adventures

When I placed the Lego Duplo Batcave Adventure box on the floor next to our giant cardboard box, as an invitation to play, I honestly thought because it was LEGO DUPLO, only Miss K (who is almost 3) and possibly Mr E ( who is 4), would be interested.

Boy, was I wrong. It didn’t take long for Mr M and N (who are 6) to scramble onto the floor to join in the play. Although I hadn’t expected or planned for Mr M and Mr N to be play with LEGO DUPLO, Mr M and Mr N were obviously motivated to join in, build stories and make adventures… so I let them be, and they all played together.

Play & Discover

Miss K was fascinated with the canon on the Batwing. Let them play and discover. She figured out how to load the canon but got stuck with how to fire it. She asked me to help her fire the canon. I showed her once, and that was all it took for her to spend the next good 15 minutes just firing the canon and loading it – over, and over, and over again. I love how LEGO DUPLO is specifically designed to be fun and safe for younger hands.

Create & Share

Being twins, Mr M and N (now 6) they have had, for better or worse, more than their share of chances to work and collaborate with each other. Let them create and share. There were squabbles about how to build certain parts. I generally leave them be and let them sort things out. If the frustration levels start to get a bit much and accusations become painfully whiny, I step in with my suggestions or observations of the situation. (The number of times the words, “I think the missing part is under the book,” has solved many squabbles is unbelievable!)

LEGO DUPLO Batman Adventure Giveaway

If you’re after a gift for preschoolers (or older), LEGO DUPLO Batcave Adventure is a winner. It’s fun, has easy to use gadgets for younger hands and offers loads of different ways to play for quite a wide age range; Miss K (almost 3) and her brothers Mr N and Mr M (who are 6) spent a good afternoon playing together (while I made dinner… priceless!).

To celebrate the importance of play, we are delighted to have one LEGO DUPLO Batcave Adventure to give away to one of our lovely readers.

For a chance to win, in the comments below, tell me “How does your child play with LEGO DUPLO?”. The competition is open to Australian residents and closes 5pm (AEDST) on the 27th October, 2014 . Please note the terms and conditions of the giveaway.

The post LEGO DUPLO Batcave Adventure Pack: Review & Giveaway by Pauline appeared first on Lessons Learnt Journal.

This afternoon, I caught up with another school Mum as we were picking up our children after school. We talked about the school holidays that had been, less than a week ago. She had a wonderful school holiday. They went away camping and she did nothing – she didn’t even bring a book to read. Every now and then her children would run by her. They did what they wanted to, and she went along with it.

Upon reflection, I think I had that sort of school holiday too. We didn’t go away camping, (still yet to pluck up the courage and convince hubby) – but I would wake up late, (that’s 8am for us parents, right?), and I would have a chat with the kids about stuff to do during the day. The kids had more control over their days during the school holidays. 

Here is what I have learnt about including children in making plans for the day – when you give kids choice and ownership over their own learning, chances are they will be highly motivated, very engaged and well behaved. That’s not to say I let them run wild with making decisions. I’m still the parent. I am still the responsible one, (so no… we can’t go and explore the tide pools because there are high waves today, and I’m pretty sure we’ll get swept away, thank you very much). 

During our school holidays, we played, we gardened, we cooked, we went out and met with friends, we rested.

The planner in me still plans for particular learning experiences, but I allow my kids to move away from them based on their interests. I then plan based on my observations of their interests and skills. 

Play Based Learning

Play-based learning is often associated with being child-led; i.e. the power of play revolves around the child, using the the environment or context they are in and the resources available to them. However, the way adults intervene, (or knows when not to intervene) in children’s play, is a crucial factor in play-based learning.

Like any aspect of teaching and parenting, adults move fluidly between the roles of manager, facilitator and player as they engage with children to help them develop their skills, knowledge and attitudes.

As parents and teachers, here are five things to consider, as we move between manager, facilitator and player on that play-based learning stage:

{ONE} Let them choose.

They choose who to work with. They choose the resources they make use of in their play. They choose the location of their play. Children learn best when they are motivated and part of their motivation comes from being in more control of their own learning and following areas of enquiry in which they are interested.

{TWO} Let them be creative.

Foster creative learners by allowing them the time, resources and space to undertake possibility thinking and re-frame their perspectives. This isn’t so much about us teaching in creative ways, this is about letting them think outside the box.

{THREE} Let them be curious.

Children are mini-scientists, who discover the world about them through an enquiry-driven interaction. They become researchers as they collect and interpret information. Let them choose what they want to investigate and present.

{FOUR} Let them take risks.

Let them choose which problems to work on and how to work on their chosen problems. Let them plan and collaborate with others. Encourage them to be resilient and persevere in their problem solving. Let them come up with solutions and recommendations.

{FIVE} Let them connect with others.

Children are social learners. A key part of being a social learner is the communication between those playing, whether that is adult to child or child to child. Let them try out their ideas in a safe and secure environment while learning the rules of a range of different forms of communication including talk, body language and turn taking. E.g. we share our ideas and listen to one another; we talk one at a time; we respect each other’s opinions; we give reasons to explain our ideas; if we disagree we they to ask why?; we always try to be kind and loving.

Every child learns through play. Play matters and there are so many ways to play and learn.

The post Play Matters: Supporting Play Based Learning by Pauline appeared first on Lessons Learnt Journal.

True story: Another kindergarten teacher visits my class while we were doing some bubble art. During lunch, in the teacher’s staffroom, he asks if I have more play ideas. I say, “Yes,”… (of course!) lol. If you’ve been following me at Lessons Learnt Journal for any length of time, you’ll know that play and games for kids has become a huge part of my world.

I have had four kids within the space of three and a half years. I have seen my children thrive as we embraced the world of play-based learning. Kids have a natural enthusiasm for learning through their natural curiosity about the world around them. They are keen to learn, with inquisitive minds. When watching and hearing them play, I find it fascinating to think about the complex processes that are happening within play.

Play is appropriate for humans of any age. I will always treasure the memories of my babies and toddlers playing and drawing in their big cardboard box and making a collage with sticky back paper. I will always keep a ball in our home for baby ball games, should we have baby and toddler guests. 

I know how tricky it can be to find games for kids, (especially when you are sleep deprived). I know how valuable it is when other mums share what has worked for them. I love being inspired by great ideas, trying them out and seeing my children play, learn and grow.

I’m super chuffed to be one of the authors the Zero to Two Book of Play. I’ve seen the published version and it’s simply amazing.

• It’s filled with inspiring play ideas that are really practical and doable!
• The photos are beautiful.
• There are simple, clear step-by-step guides for things you can easily try at home.
• There are 25 ideas for babies and toddlers, and additional links to over 50 more activities. 
• There’s a great range of activities: the classics, things with a twist, sensory; all with a focus on play, backed up with lots of learning.

Check out this video for a sneak peek into the Zero to Two Book of Play.

To celebrate the release of the Zero to Two Book of Play, the eBook will be $6.99USD for one week only. After the 16th February, 2014 you can purchase the eBook for $8.99USD. You can buy your Zero to Two Book of Play, on any device, and download the eBook when you are ready.

(You can buy the book anywhere in the world. Paypal will take care of any currency conversions.)

Happy playing, because #playmatters!

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The post Games for Kids: Zero to Two Book of Play by Pauline appeared first on Lessons Learnt Journal.