1. THEORY AS LENSES ON CHILDREN’S PLAY

2. CONTRIBUTION TO THE DISCIPLINE OF CHILD DEVELOPMENT
SIGMUND FREUD
CONTRIBUTION TO THE DISCIPLINE OF CHILD DEVELOPMENT

3. SIGMUND FREUD All behavior is motivated, often by unconscious dynamics
Freud’s theory of dreams emphasized the meaningfulness of dreams as manifestations of the unconscious mind
Early childrearing experiences, especially in weaning, toilet training, and the role of the family in the handling of sexuality and aggression, are seen as significant factors in development
Freud gave new hope to the treatment of psychopathology and changed social attitudes toward the neurotic and psychotic
A major motivating force in human behavior is sexuality, including the idea of infantile sexuality
Freud ascribes meaning to errors, forgettings, slips of the tongue, and other unintended behavior, believing that they are expressions of unconscious forces.

4. PSYCHOANALYTIC LENSE
As children experience personality growth through id, ego, superego, play becomes vital helping resolve the pressure of biological forces and environmental conditioning
Play has therapeutic use in helping children deal with inappropriate experiences

5. Alternative Perspective by Lili Peller (1954)
Play is simply a reflection of the child dealing with reality.
Through play, we experiment with the way in which we wish things could be

6. BATESON ON PLAY FRAMES
When children play they are communicating
Children engage in play frame (signaling that we are moving from reality to imagination). Imaginary is a map and reality is the terrain.
Play allows children to social skills/role flexibility. Prepares them for future roles in society

7. CATHERINE GARVEY’S ON PLAY TALK
Explored how children signaled to their playmates during play
When play becomes boring or too stressful they terminate it
Boys and girls engage in play, however, girls tend to use more language signals

8. PIAGET ON PLAY AS ASSIMILATION
Interest in thought and reasoning
Focus on organization and adaptation
A child demonstrates knowledge thru existing schemes.
These schemes are used to take in new knowledge. This is called Assimilation
Because of new experiences, children are challenged to change the way they think. This is called Accommodation

9. Piaget’s Stages of Development
Sensorimotor. Explore world thru senses. Object Permanence (grasping rattle; repeated dropping of toys)
Preoperational. Symbolic play and construction represents the thoughts of children during this stage. (Building with blocks; modeling clay).
Concrete. Games with rules. (Marbles, tag)
Formal. Games with reasoning and logic.

10. LEV VYGOTSKY ON PLAY
Vygotsky concerned with the origin of play/how it develops and whether play is the predominant activity of children
Concluded that play is not a predominant activity during preschool years but is the leading source of development
Rejected the view that play is due to pleasure expression. Instead, play is imaginary, illusory realization of unrealized behaviors. Children are internalizing rules placed by their observations.
Maintains that children under 3 cannot engage in imaginary play

11. VYGOTSKY CONTINUED
Play objects (pivots) assist children in developing imaginary play. Between ages 3-5yrs, a stick becomes a gun, a pencil becomes a plane
Play is a source of development and creates the zone of proximal development (ZPD)
ZPD. A range of tasks between those the child can handle independently and those at the highest level she can master thru play or with the help of adults or competent peers
Thru scaffolding (degree of support given), adults can help advance children thru play

12. JEROME BRUNER
Play facilitates development in many domains: Problem-solving, cooperative and competitive social interaction, sex roles, cultural acquisition, language, and creativity
Play is an immature activity/allows children to explore and master abilities needed in the adult world
Play allows for decontextualization. Experiment and make errors without consequences

13. Children transition through the following stages:
MILDRED PARTEN
Interested in genetic sociology of classroom. Explore the transition children make as they become social participants in group activities
Children transition through the following stages:
Uninvolved/nonsocial (age 2). No sense of play/others
Onlookers. Observes but does not participate
Solitary. Plays alone (ages 2-3)
Parallel. Plays near others but plays alone/not sharing
Associative. Plays with others, but purposes may not be similar
Cooperative. Goals of play are shared and negotiated; tasks and roles relate to play’s purpose. Common goal, product, or game

14. PEER CULTURE AND PLAY
An important role of the peer culture is the diffusion of values and norms
Children often use games and chants to keep others inline or to exclude them from the group.
Sometimes, adults considered outsiders.
General develops during play on playgrounds and with neighborhood friends. Unsupervised play.

15. Group Process: Developing Theory of Play
Develop at least three assumptions that guide your theory of play and development
Explain your theory as it pertains to infancy and early childhood
What are the strengths and weaknesses of your theory

16. By Heidemann and Hewitt
THE BASICS OF PLAY
By Heidemann and Hewitt

17. Play: A Singular Experience or Multiple Exploration
Children may engage an object or a task and spend much time exploring and manipulating during play.
Children may also engage multiple objects or tasks for the purpose of exploration and manipulation.
One of the primary reasons objects are employed in play is to promote growth and development
Enhancing imagination
Curiosity and discovery

18. Play with Objects
Sensorimotor Play. Children explore sensory stimulation of collecting information about their environment (Promotes competence and development).
Constructive Play. Children begin to manipulate objects to create based on their developing knowledge.
Dramatic Play. As children begin to develop imagination, they begin to use objects to represent mental thought processes in order to execute an experience (Representational Skills).
In time, children begin to imitate the perceived behaviors and roles of others during play (Role-Playing).
Games with Rules