Creating Learning through Play Experiences for Children: A Mobile App to Support Playful Pedagogy

Group Submission Type: Pre-conference Workshop

Description of Session

The purpose of the workshop is to introduce educators to practical, hands-on tools to help them create stimulating learning experiences in their childcare settings and classrooms. Participants will first learn about the Learning through Play Experience Framework (LEF), which was developed as a foundation for observing and understanding child experiences with learning through play. Then, participants will have an opportunity to download and learn how to use a new mobile app created under LEGO Foundation’s Play and Learning in Children’s Eyes (PALICE) project. This app is based on the LEF and was designed to help teachers gain a better understanding of how children engage in play and use that understanding to thoughtfully design learning through play opportunities for their students. Participants in this workshop will be invited to use the new app in their own classrooms after the conference and share their experiences with the developers.

The LEGO Foundation has supported numerous efforts around the globe, seeking to create stimulating, playful learning environments for children from birth throughout their primary schooling years. This workshop begins with the conceptual framework for the PALICE tools, called the LEF. This conceptual framework is based on the idea that different types of play will be appropriate at different times, depending on factors such as the child’s age, the learning goal, and the constraints/opportunities of a given classroom setting. We suggest that each type of play has a role in classroom setting and our goal is to help teachers reflect upon their ability to facilitate that type of play within their classroom context. Within each play type, there are certain foundational characteristics that are essential but there are also ways that teachers can improve upon their practice by engaging with behaviors that are more likely to extend the quality of the practice by harnessing the characteristics of learning.

The LEF provides the structure for the LEGO PALICE app, which is a formative tool to help teachers assess and improve their planning and implementation of Learning through Play (LtP). The app is designed for teachers to use in their own classrooms with children ages 3-12. It guides teachers through a four-step process:
1. Setting an intention for the LtP activity, including specific learning goals and the type of play to be used.
2. Observing the behaviors of the children through a checklist which is dynamically tailored to the specific intentions specified in step 1.
3. Reflecting on the lesson by reviewing coaching tips generated by the observation data,
4. Triangulate the observation data by speaking to the children and gathering their perspectives and feelings on the activity.

This tool is intended to support teachers who would like to learn more about their practice and the children’s experiences with learning through play activities. It is intended for self-administration and self-reflection, and NOT for evaluative purposes.

Sub Unit

• Pre-Conference Workshops, Book launches, and Visual Art Exhibits / Pre-Conference Workshop

Workshop Organizer

• Brian P Dooley, FHI 360

Presenters

• Jennifer Zosh, Penn State University, Brandywine

• Rafael Eduardo Contreras Gomez, FHI 360

• Martin Ariapa, Luigi Giussani Institute of Higher Education