Three months ago I accepted a special education job with my local district….returning to my roots after several years in the regular ed sphere. I expected to be excited about this new adventure, but with each passing day I felt more and more uneasy about it. I knew I wasn’t supposed to be there. So, after a week of sitting on the decision, I turned the job down and embarked on the adventure that I mentioned as both scaring me and exciting me the most in this recent post. I was going to jump in head first and open my own preschool.
It was July. My basement was completely unfinished. I wasn’t sure I could pull this off fast enough to start this school year. But, as they do when the time is right, everything just fell into place. It was a whirlwind couple of months with a basement under construction, but 3 weeks ago I welcomed 12 wonderful kiddos into my new learning space and it has turned out just like I hoped it would!
I am enjoying so much having full freedom to teach and run my classroom in the way that I feel best meets the needs of my students. I’ve never completely been able to step into the role of facilitator and guide before, and there is so much to learn….but the children are already showing me why deep and engaging play is the best way for them to learn. Here’s what I’ve learned so far:
#1 Play Has Been Trained Out of Children
There was a lot of excitement on the first few days of school–the toys and materials were all new and there was so much for the kids to explore. But, it was a little bit of a dump and run–there was not a lot of engagement with anything for many of the kids. After the initial curiosity of new materials had worn off, many kids felt at a loss for what to do.
They are used to toys close-ended toys that don’t require a whole lot of input or creativity from them. When presented with materials that have endless possibilities, they weren’t sure how to interact with them. There was a feeling of “what now?” from some of the kids. They simply did not know how to actually play.
#2 Given Time and Space, Play Will Return
By the end of our second week of school, I was observing so many fun things! The majority of our days had been spent settling into the routine of having LOTS of time to play and the kids were catching on. I heard “I don’t know what to do” far less and “Look what I made!” far more.
Loose parts that had been relatively ignored were now turning into a myriad of creations. There was still some questioning “Am I allowed to do this?”, but it wasn’t long before the kids understood that as long as it wasn’t destructive or hurtful to someone else, they had the freedom to explore and experiment to their heart’s content.
#3 Self-directed Play Yields Amazing Results
As Curiosity, creativity, and imagination began to emerge, I saw the strengths and interests of each child start to come to the forefront. The way they applied those strengths to their play was fascinating to watch.
They had ideas for ways to use materials that I never would have thought of. They were learning from their play and I was learning from them!
#4 Learning Abounds Without Constant Interruption From Adults
Children do not need micro-managing. They do not need constant direct instruction. They are capable human beings and will shine when given the opportunity. It is critical for adults to back off and let children learn and discover in their own ways.
Guiding questions can be helpful, but jumping in to offer a solution or complete part of a task yourself so that it gets done fast or “right” sends the message that you do not view the children as capable.
Stepping into the role of a facilitator and guide revealed to me that kids can do amazing things with long stretches of uninterrupted play. Not even the best written lesson plan could procure the depth of learning I was witnessing! It was incredible!
Over time, I expect that I’ll continue to gain more and more insight into the best ways to run a child-led, play-based classroom. Learning on my end is an ongoing process, and it is so fun to see the knowledge I’m acquiring actually come to fruition in a group of children!