Learning through play

There are critical differences between play and work. Play is mostly a self-chosen activity by the child, rather than prescribed by a parent or teacher; it is a process, rather than a predicted outcome or product. Work, on the other hand, has a definite intent and a prescribed outcome.[6]

According to Dietze and Kashin:

In order for an activity to be considered play, the experience must include a measure of inner control, ability to bend or invent reality, and a strong internally based motivation for playing. If parents and educators try to label experiences as play, but in reality have specific requirements for the activity, then it becomes work not play. For example, it is really impossible to play with flash cards whose purpose is to have a child memorize something on each card. This is not playing and children quickly differentiate between pure play and work being disguised as play.[7]

Play is not wasted time, but rather time spent building new knowledge from previous experience.[8] However, long term developmental qualities of play are difficult to research.[9] There are various ways in which researchers may choose to look at the differences between work and play. Researchers may choose definitions of play or work based on:

1. Primary Activities: Even if a culture considers a child's action is play, a researcher may choose to define the child's action as work because it does add “ immediate worth to the family unit.” [10]
2. The Parent's Concept: Parents from different cultures define children's actions of work and play differently.[10] For example, a Mayan mother whose daughter sets up her own fruit stand may consider this action as play.[11] However, many westerners would consider this work if the child is actually successful at selling items from the fruit stand. A child in the United States who sets up a lemonade stand is considered to be working for money.
3. The Child's Concept: Children have different ideas of what play and work are in comparison to adults.

There are three main groups of play theories:[5]

1. Classical theories focus on play from the aspects of burning off excess energy; recreation and relaxation; replenishing energy after hard work; practicing future roles, and recapitulation theory (passing through successive stages by ancestors). Herbert Spencer suggests that play is a mechanism that allows humans to expend excess energy not required for survival; this can be achieved by children through play.
2. Modern theories examine play from the perspective of how it impacts a child's development. According to Dietze and Kashin, “The learner is no longer regarded as a passive receiver of knowledge, but as an active constructor of meaning”.[12] This perspective is emphasized within the constructionist theory through experiential learning. Theorist John Dewey suggests that children learn best by both physical and intellectual activity; in other words, children need to take an active role in play.
3. Contemporary theories focus on the relationship of play to diversity and social justice in daily living and knowledge. Children learn social and cultural contexts through their daily living experiences. The Zone of Proximal Development concept, developed by Lev Vygotsky, suggests that children require activities that support past learning and encourage new learning at a slightly-more-difficult level. Vygotsky believed that social engagement and collaboration with others are powerful forces which transform children's thinking. Urie Bronfenbrenner states that a child's development is influenced by both the person and the environment (which includes family, community, culture and the broader society). Vygotsky explained that early childhood is the period in which the lower mental functions become reconstructed for the first time in their lives into cultural tools used to transform their cognitive processes such as perception, attention, memory, and thinking (Khuluqo, 2016) .  This is similarly done in social-emotional transitions, allowing children to become “masters of their own behavior” instead of being “slaves to their environment.” (Bodrova & Leong 2015)

The way that children learn through play is culturally specific "as result of differences in childrearing beliefs, values, and practices."[13][14] Play both influences and reflects the way children from different cultures learn. Most western cultures would agree with the previously described definition of play where play is enjoyable, have no extrinsic goals, no prescribed learning that must occur, is spontaneous and voluntary, involves active engagement on the part of the player, involves an element of make-believe.[3] However, that is not so for most others. For example, the Yucatec Maya do not have emotional aspects in make-believe play, and most of their play is reality based.

Yucatec Maya commonly learn through "Intent Community Participation," an approach different from that commonly found among middle class European American families.[11] This approach stresses observation that intertwines individuals in community action.

Unlike children from the U.S., Yucatec Maya children seldom engage in pretend play. Pretend play is considered a form of lying because children are not representing something that actually happens. For example, a Mayan mother told an ethnographer that she would "tolerate" her child pretending that the leaves in the bowl was a form of food.[13][14] Instead of having imaginary circumstances and friends, they play through various real life situations that reflect everyday life of the Yucatec. For example, children go through the steps of making tortillas, weaving, and cleaning clothing. This relates to not having Age Segregation. Unlike children of the industrialized middle-class who play mainly with children of the same age, The Yucatec Mayan children engage with all ages, exploring activities of daily life.

Different cultures and communities encourage children to play in different ways. For instance, some cultures may prevent parents from joining in play, prohibit children from receiving toys, or may expect children to play in mixed age groups away from adults. They may be expected to grow out of play by 5 or in middle childhood.[15]

Different age groups have different cognitive capabilities.[16] For example, when older Yucatec children pretend to discipline (modeling parental structures and exploring emotions), children who are younger may react negatively because they do not understand that the discipline is a game.[13]

Their culture also emphasizes learning through observation. Children are active participators by observing and modeling activities that are useful to the community. " It is inherently integrated into the daily activities of the compound."[14] Their repeated realistic representations of the adult world are represented through their play.

In the first half of the twentieth century, Susan Isaacs introduced the study of play. This came from the understanding of child development that came from Western Europe and the USA. However, experts such as Gunilla Dahlberg et al. (1999) suggest that Western ways of looking at play cannot be applied cross culturally. Fleer's (1995) work with Australian aboriginal children challenges Western experts as to whether it is ideal to encourage play. She suggests that, "the children she studied did not play, and that it is not necessary for them to do so".[17]

Play is sufficiently important to the UN that it has recognized it as a specific right for all children.[18] Children need the freedom to explore and play. Play also contributes to brain development. Play enables developmental in the prefrontal cortex of mammals, including humans. Evidence from neuroscience shows that the early years of a child's development (from birth to age six) set the basis for learning, behavior and health throughout life.[19] A child's neural pathways are influenced in their development through the exploration, thinking, problem-solving and language expression which occur during play episodes.[20] According to the Canadian Council on Learning, "Play nourishes every aspect of children's development – it forms the foundation of intellectual, social, physical, and emotional skills necessary for success in school and in life. Play 'paves the way for learning'”.[21]

Learning occurs when children play with blocks, paint a picture or play make-believe. During play children try new things, solve problems, invent, create, test ideas and explore. Children need unstructured, creative playtime; in other words, children need time to learn through their play.[3] The level of emotional arousal enacted during play is ideal for consolidation and integration of neural pathways.  Allowing the child to direct the play means allowing the child to find the place most comfortable, allowing the promotion of neuroplasticity.  Within the playroom where there are endless opportunities for children to engage in self-directed play and create their own schemas allowing the integration of affect and cognition. Play also promotes neuroplasticity development by allowing children to co-construct wordless narratives of self-awareness and transformation.  (Stewart, Field, Echterling, 2016)

According to Pascel, "Play is serious business for the development of young learners. This is such an important understanding. A deliberate and effective play-based approach supports young children's cognitive development. When well designed, such an approach taps into children's individual interests, draws out their emerging capacities, and responds to their sense of inquiry and exploration of the world around them. It generates highly motivated children enjoying an environment where the learning outcomes of a curriculum are more likely to be achieved”.[22]

According to Linda Longley and colleagues, experts and parents have different beliefs about the relationship between play activities and learning. While parents ascribe more learning value to structured play activities (e.g., educational videos), experts identify structured activities as "non-play" and associate less learning value with these activities compared to unstructured activities (make-believe, or pretend, play).[30]

Play in the classroom fosters improvements in skills needed to succeed in the transitions from preschool to kindergarten and every opportunity for play is an opportunity for growth in knowledge on subjects such as early literacy, socio-emotional skills, language, mathematics, and it does this for children from both low- and higher-income socioeconomic status. However, in spite of the recognized benefits of play in terms of academics, studies show a stead decrease in kindergartens classes allowance of play-based activities.  As public school teachers face pressure to shift their classes towards more academically focused curriculum. (Lynch, 2015)

Forty years of research has shown positive correlation between play and children's learning.[38] This has led many to conclude that play is beneficial for all learning. However, many such findings may be reflective of procedural knowledge rather than declarative knowledge.[39] It is not certain whether correlational research can prove or know what degree play is responsible for these advantages.[38] The assumptions that children can learn declarative information, such as words or facts, simply based on evidence that children acquire skills in play can not be made.[39] The true value of play is not that it can teach children facts, but that it can help them acquire important procedural knowledge, which is beneficial in acquiring declarative knowledge.[39] In play based learning environments, the classroom is where there are endless opportunities for children to engage in self-directed play and create their own schemas allowing the integration of affect and cognition.

Regarding creativity, meta-analysis has shown unconvincing evidence of pretend play enhancing creativity.[38] Correlation studies have been inconsistent, with some showing relationships only to social pretend play, pretend play, or constructional play, and other studies failing to show relationships to those same constructs.[38] In terms of intelligence, the research has claimed it is not certain whether play promotes intelligence or intelligence promotes play and other adult interventions are no different in promoting intelligence in children.[38] For problem solving, the form of construction play is correlated with solving problems that involve construction (puzzle toys). Further research should examine if such “play” helps problem solving generally.[38]

Pretend play, also known as "make-believe play" involves acting out ideas and emotions. Children act out stories that contain different perspectives and ideas. Although some studies show that this type of play does not enhance child development, others have found that it has a large impact on children's language usage and awareness of the perspectives of others. Pretend play can also help with a child's self-regulation in the areas of civility, delayed gratification, empathy, and reduced aggression. It can also improve social skills such as empathy, problem solving, and communication.[40] Play based learning experiences also provide caregivers an opportunity to assess behavioral output and intervene if a child is showing signs of developmental delay or trauma and are able to then recommend services based on those observations made during play.