Young children use their knowledge to inform their play. As they acquire new knowledge, it becomes incorporated into their play and the play becomes more sophisticated. For teachers, this is the place where we begin to look for evidence of the children's knowledge and understanding.
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| A bird is caught by a predator! |
In our bird study, the children's knowledge and application of birds has become very clear during their play times in the park, in drama, and also while playing games. One popular game that we play involves the teacher naming an animal or behavior and the children trying to act like the word we say: “The children were all goslings!”
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| Goslings! |
As the children have learned new information, their ideas about birds and bird behaviors have changed and evolved. They may not have known what a gosling was before, but they are hearing it repeated over and over and are practicing behaving like a gosling with their peers.
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| Pigeon squabs strutting and swooping |
Vocabulary becomes a key component here. When children are given a direction to become an eyas, some of them remember that word, but others might not.
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| "We're eyas, right?" |
A quick reminder that eyas are baby hawks helps some children to know what to do, but others may need a little more conversation to think about “What might you be doing if you are baby hawk?” And then, acting out how a hawk might move differently from a pigeon or a freshly hatched bird helps to solidify both the vocabulary word and the concept.
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| Give me food! |
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| Freshly hatched nestlings want some food! |
In addition to building vocabulary, the children are building their knowledge of bird habitats and types. Becoming a gosling and remembering that a gosling swims, helps reinforce that a goose is a water fowl, while becoming an eyas learning how to hunt reinforces that a hawk is a bird of prey. Where a bird lives can become just as important in the course of their play as what type of bird they pretend to be.
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| A brood of fledglings in a nest |
Similarly, the knowledge of roles can inform the play. How might a mother bird behave differently from a fledgling? How might a bird that is a predator move? What would a duckling look like when it walks?
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| A flock of birds |
Through the bird play that is happening in drama, children are remembering what birds do to take care of their young. They know that when they make a nest, they need to make a soft, cozy place for their eggs to rest.
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| A baby bird in its nest, waiting for mother |
If a predator comes, they need to hurry back to the nest and cover their eggs or gather their young underneath them. In this manner, the play has evolved and deepened. In all of these ways, vocabulary is a key component that supports the play. If you are resting on your egg, you are incubating that egg. This word will then become a new word that you know.
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Waiting for the other eggs to hatch
"I'm a lonely bird. My brothers and sisters haven't hatched yet." |
The use of vocabulary and appropriate fantasy play allows teachers to see that the children are not only processing what they are learning, but also continuing the developmentally appropriate separation of fantasy and reality. They are able to have freedom within structure and choice with direction, all while continuing the work of childhood.
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| Penguins waddling |
