What Is Play? Play in Theory and Play in Practice

• In Event: Conceptions of Play in Early Childhood Classrooms

Abstract

Though play is a central part of early childhood thought and purportedly its practice, its definition, implementation, and study are surprisingly contested at worst and varied at best. This paper describes a project undertaken by a Research Practice Partnerships (RPPs) of four urban districts in a Midwest state that was designed to address RPPs partner concerns about play’s disappearance from many kindergartens and public pre-Kindergarten programs. Drawing from a qualitative study, we examined how pre-Kindergarten and kindergarten teachers thought about and implemented play. Teachers in 16 classrooms participated in video observations and debrief interviews. Using video and interview analysis, we found that teachers held various definitions of play, conceptualized their roles in different ways, and implemented different types of play.

Authors

• Jiyeon Lee, University of Wisconsin - Madison

• Fujiuju Chang, University of Wisconsin - Madison

• Minji Seo, University of Wisconsin - Madison

• Mary Elizabeth (Beth) Graue, University of Wisconsin - Madison