Guest post by Sarah Vanover, PhD, author of Building on Emergent Curriculum, about how educators can guide families to create playful learning experiences at home. Our editorial team added activity suggestions for you to find additional easy, family-friendly, at-home activities.
Guest post by Sarah Vanover, PhD, author of Building on Emergent Curriculum, about how educators can guide families to create playful learning experiences at home. Our editorial team added activity suggestions for you to find additional easy, family-friendly, at-home activities.
Family members often wonder how to incorporate more play into their children’s routines outside the classroom. Most families have such busy schedules that they have trouble setting aside large blocks of time for creating and imagining in the evenings and on the weekends.
Encourage families not to overschedule their children’s calendars. Children will have plenty of time for sports, dance classes, and so on in elementary school, but during preschool, they need unstructured time to learn and grow.
Even if families spend a lot of time away from their homes, they still have many ways to incorporate play into daily life.
Early childhood educators can encourage family members to use activities such as the following to increase the amount of playtime they have with their children:
- Play simple games in the car, such as I Spy or finding pictures in the clouds. Try the I Spy Game from the Giant Encyclopedia of Transition Activities!
- Cook together. This messy-play opportunity also allows children to practice math skills such as measuring and fine motor skills such as pouring and stirring. You can even try “cooking” playdough, an activity from Kick-Start Kindergarten Readiness!
- Along with or instead of reading picture books at bedtime, family members can take turns creating short stories. Try the Story Starter activity from What Does a Lion Say?
- Find ways to turn daily chores into games, such as matching socks by color or jumping into piles of leaves before bagging them up. Try the Sorting the Groceries activity from the Encyclopedia of Infant and Toddler Activities, revised!
- Turn grocery shopping into a scavenger hunt. Instead of going straight to the correct aisles, have children offer ideas about where to look for certain products. You could also try the teddy bear scavenger hunt or other neighborhood games in Little Walks, Big Adventures!
- Enjoy some water play during bath time. Place measuring cups and spoons in the tub to help children learn about size and volume. Try the Bathtub Water Play activity from Banish Boredom!
- Build a blanket fort in the living room, or have a picnic on the kitchen floor. Try the Build a House activity from the Giant Encyclopedia of Learning Center Activities!
- Sing songs and dance together. Find or create unique songs that can help with daily routines, such as brushing teeth, getting dressed, or making beds. Try the Sing, Sing, Sing activity from the GIANT Encyclopedia of Preschool Activities for 3-Year-Olds!
Material from Building on Emergent Curriculum: The Power of Play for School Readiness by Sarah Vanover, PhD (page 44), ISBN 978-0-87659-845-0.
