Play as the Vehicle for Learning and Human Connection

• In Event: Thursday Roundtable Session 12:40 pm
  In Roundtable Session: Expanding Experiences and Intended Outcomes Around STEM Learning (Table 17)

Abstract

This paper examines a kindergarten math class during a playful lesson called “Birds on a Wire,” an activity that used birds to explore the different ways to make 5 and give students introductory practice at writing equations using a plus and equal sign. Findings from this analysis suggest that when play was incorporated as a vehicle for learning rather than a reward for good behavior, it operated as a shared and necessary opportunity for learning and human connection.

Authors

• Candice Love, University of Maryland

• Melissa Sommerfeld Gresalfi, Vanderbilt University

• Anita A. Wager, Vanderbilt University