The Dominant Theoretical Perspectives and Ideologies of Play

A Critical Analysis of The Dominant Theoretical Perspectives and Ideologies of Play That Have Influenced Early Years and Primary Educational Practice in the UK
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A Critical Analysis of The Dominant Theoretical Perspectives and Ideologies of Play That Have Influenced Early Years and Primary Educational Practice in the UK
Introduction
Play refers to all the activities carried out by human beings for amusements. The aim of the play is to have positive behavioral, psychomotor, and social impacts on the person. One of the pioneers of play is Friedrich Froebel, who claimed that being active was an important factor in the life of a child. He believed that children are born creative. Therefore, the interaction between children during play can help develop their ability to express themselves. Fredrich believes about has a lot of influence in today's UK system of education. Another pioneer of play is Susan Issacs, who pointed out that children will always be willing to learn as long as they are put in the right environment (Tabone and Briffa, 2014). Various theorists have put across theories to explain the impact of play on children. One of such theories is Karl Groos's practice theory which outlines that play is a way of preparing people for adulthood. According to Karl, play enables a child to anticipate their future activities, and this enables them to overcome problems in life (Gray, 2017). This occurs as children play different roles, which also help in developing their cognitive abilities. Another play theorist is Lazarus of Berlin, who put across the re-creative theory. According to Lazarus, play enables a child to regain the energy spend on doing other work. Playing leaves a child feeling energized to tackle other activities. Therefore, this paper will discuss the ideologies presented by the two pioneers of play and the theoretical perspectives that influence play. The paper will also outline how these ideologies and theoretical perspectives have influenced the current curricular provision of the UK.
Theme 1: enabling environment, adult-led/ child-led
Play requires a conducive environment to ensure that the children have all the resources they need to facilitate the play session. Some of the play sessions can be adult-led, where an adult shows the children the activities to participate in and how to execute them. In a child-led play session, an adult is involved. The two environments of play help in the cognitive development of the kids. Each environment is unique to the child, and adults ought to ensure that it is conducive to play. For instance, an adult-led environment would involve a teacher guiding the students through role-playing. The adults would guide the children on what to and what not to do. An example of child-led play is one where children are left to play without an adult's intervention. In such environments, the children are responsible for one another's well-being.
An enabling environment is a key to ensuring that the children enjoy the play session. Friedrich points out that play enables a child to gain the energy they lost doing other activities. Such makes it important for adults to provide the children with a conducive environment to facilitate the play session. If the child is not given such an environment, they might not re-energize. Such would make it challenging for them to understand classroom concepts. Children in their early and primary years need play to enhance their abilities to comprehend concepts in class. Therefore, if the children are provided with the right environment and play environment, they will benefit a lot from the exercise.
An enabling environment might hinder the ability of the children to play well. In some cases, children prefer to play without supervision, while in other cases, they require supervision. Therefore, if a child preferred to play without supervision, they might not benefit from playing in an adult-led environment. In situations where the children prefer a child-led, they would benefit most if allowed to play in such an environment. However, an adult might not always know the children's preferences, and hence, it can be challenging to offer them an enabling play environment. According to Susan, children can learn better if placed in a conducive environment. Play contributes to making such environments. However, it takes a lot of effort for adults to identify the right play environment since children have different preferences.
There are many play activities that children can participate in. However, the benefit that the children get from participating in such activities depends on the play environment. Fredrich claims that play is the best way for a child to gain the energy lost in doing other activities. Through the right guidance, different play activities will help students regain such energy soonest possible (Tabone and Briffa, 2014). If the child doesn't regain the energy, they will be less attentive in the classroom, and this could affect their performance. What matters is for adults to identify the kind of play environments that the children prefer. Once such environments have been identified, it will be easy for the child to re-energize.
Playing is all about identifying fun activities for children and providing the right environment for the children to participate in such activities. According to Susan, providing the right play setting allows students to learn. The main reason children go to school is to learn. Playing facilitates the learning process (Tabone and Briffa, 2014). Various play activities help in the development of cognitive, behavioral, and cognitive skills. These skills are necessary for the learning process because they determine how the students understand concepts and relate with one another in the class environment. Karl's theory of play points out that play prepares children for adulthood. Such is made possible by the benefits that children get when they participate in different play activities. Adults ought to identify the key play activities that offer the most benefit to children.
Theme 2: outdoor play
Outdoor play provides children with challenging play activities. In turn, the children are able to develop their cognitive and behavioral skills. An example of outdoor play is climbing wooden planks. This kind of play tends to be challenging and requires the child to use their brains and body strength to be able to play. In most cases, indoor plays do not require children to apply much effort. Therefore, this makes outdoor play contain the best activities that can help develop the child's learning abilities. Outdoor play requires less supervision, and this teaches the child the art of taking care of themselves and those they associate with. The outdoor environment allows the child to interact with nature, thus enabling them to relax their mind and re-energize.
According to Susan, children require the right setting for them to learn. Outdoor play provides such an environment. As children participate in outdoor play activities, they are able to refresh their minds and learn important life skills. Some of the outdoor play activities tend to be complicated, and this motivates the child to think. Through this process, they develop their cognitive abilities, which are, in turn, reflected in the class environment. Other play activities are competitive, and this enables the child to learn how to associate with other people. The variety of outdoor activities that children can participate in provides the right setting to facilitate learning. These activities are made to suit children in different age groups. What matters most is for adults to ensure that the children participate in activities that challenge them to their abi...