Play and learning at school Five year olds

Streaming video - 2014

Play and learning at school follows the fascinating interactions of a class of primary school children. It's towards the end of reception year and they are settled and confident. Purposeful play is seen in abundance as we get to know individuals and see what motivates them. Watching them closely, it is evident that five year olds are capable of fantastic self-directed play that supports their development. All the prime and specific areas of the revised EYFS are in evidence, showing the real breadth of learning that is taking place in the play. The teacher provides an enabling environment that supports their creativity, collaboration and independence. She honors their play, sometimes by engaging with it and sometimes by not getting in t...he way of it. She gives them time to respond to stimulus - sometimes from the environment, sometimes from an adult, sometimes from each other and to persist to their own intended outcomes. The film challenges practitioners/students to think about what they mean by purposeful play - or whether play is just something children do when their proper work is finished. This video includes the following sequences: Introduction, Let's pretend, The wedding, Playground games, Physical developments, How and why?, Calculating and creative efforts, Playing with numbers, The witch's den. more