Early Childhood Care and Education Module 16

CURRICULUM OF PLAY-WAY APPROACH - SUPPORTING READING SKILLS

1.1 Introduction

Play is an instinct, need, joyful, interesting, fun, brain-building and must do activity
for children. It provides to the intellect and builds in knowledge by connecting
neurons and neural connections in children. Play-way is a method which promotes
the spirit of play in the teaching and learning. The ‘play-way’ approach was first used
by Henry Caldwell Cook to describe his method of teaching English. The modern
roots of understanding and applying play in education extends clearly to Friedrich
Wilhelm August Froebel, one of the most influential educational reformers of the 19 th
century. Froebel started the organised early childhood education method called
“Kindergarten”, in which he believed that children are the plants, facilitator the
gardener and school a garden.

Play-way method insists on child centered and experiential learning, where children
learn by doing and play is the force which drives them to acquire the knowledge. A
play-based curriculum builds on curiosity, motivation, problem-solving in children and
helps them to inquire and satisfy their curiosity by playing and stretching their
thinking to higher capacities. Though the method is child-centered, the learning is a
supported learning, where facilitator underpins and reinforces the concepts learnt by
children. For instance, when children are playing in the garden, facilitator can
engage them to think about certain concepts by asking questions and encouraging
them to problem solve. Facilitator also allows children to engage in concepts such as
literacy, mathematics and science. A growing body of research suggests that play-
based learning engages children in effective problem-solving behaviours and child
directed play has found to be effective for overall development in children. Many
developmental learning has been linked to play way approach, as the facilitator takes
on a passive role or an indirect role in transacting to children the concepts to be
learnt.

1.2 Learning Outcomes

At the end of this module, you will be able to

 Understand the play way method

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 Comprehend the process of acquiring reading skills in children

 Improvising early learning environment to incorporate play way method in
enhancing reading skills
 Understanding the role of facilitator in promoting and enhancing reading skills
in children
 Strategies for incorporating play way in teaching children reading skills

1.3 What is Play-way method?

Play-way is an activity-based method, which allows children to actively participate in

the learning process by satisfying their curiosity through natural urge. Learning by
doing is the principal factor of this technique. It provides an impetus for children to
achieve and be proficient in a skill through trial and error. In the process of play and
learning, children can hone their skills, rectify their mistakes and this paves way for
incidental learning. It is a flexible method, based on the needs, interest and age of
the child. This method also provides for freedom, expression of thought and
creativity in children.

Play-way is an umbrella method, which many other common teachings techniques

are based on – Kindergarten, Dalton plan, Project method, Heuristic method are
some examples.

1.4 Principles of play-way method

Play-way method is based on the following principles:

 Learning should take place in the experiential way, where children learn by doing
 Learning should take place in a conducive environment which has freedom for
children to think and satisfy their curiosity
 Play way method should suit the needs, interests and should be developmentally
appropriate for children
 Learning should be child centered
 Enough opportunities should be provided for children to express their self in a
positive manner

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1.5 Environment

In play-way method, environment is crucial in providing independence and

opportunities for children to be proficient skills. Environment is a space which
provides for children’s curiosity by helping them to manipulate, explore and
experience varied materials and methods of learning. While defining an environment
of an early learning center, it can be divided into the space provided and the
materials that offer to the child’s developing inquisitiveness. An environment with
labels, tags, pictures and words provide ample exposure to children to develop their
reading skills.

Every design and décor of the classroom provides an atmosphere for children to
explore the elements of literacy. The environment which is rich in literacy should
emphasize on conversation, reading and transcribing the language into written
format. For the environment to provide these, there should be a collection of
materials which would facilitate and foster reading skills in children. The different
ways in fostering reading skills are:

 Children’s seating: children in the classroom should be seated in groups, so that

they can converse on the projects given by the facilitator. The problem solving
can be a group effort where, children can convey their ideas and can use their
mixed abilities to solve the problem given to them.
 Books: a book corner or a library with open access to varied genres of books and
different types of books such as big books, picture books, cloth books or digital
books should be introduced to enhance the vocabulary of children. An
environment with books will help children develop an interest towards books and
reading.
 Tags / Labels: an early learning environment encompasses different materials.
Books and other reading materials are essential for triggering and enhancing
children’s literacy experience and lay foundation for the reading skills. Tags and
labels give visual cues for children on the location of materials and items in the
environment. Labels and tags add on the organization of the environment.
Labels, tags also contribute to self-directed learning. Common items like clock,
rack, sink, bowls, bins etc should be labelled near the item. This will promote

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letter and word recognition, will also help in understanding the print and will also
encourage reading in children.
 Meeting place: a meeting place can be arranged in the environment, for children
to meet and talk about the classes, discuss about their feelings, thoughts etc.
Meeting place can be open to be accessed during the core hours of the center.

1.6 Facilitator’s Role

During pre-school years, there is an increase in the vocabulary of children and this
increase develops even more when children interacts with peers and adults. In play-
way method an adult in the centre is responsible to facilitate to children the joy of
learning in a playful manner. Facilitators in the play-way method should support
children’s learning by motivating, building curiosity, questioning and allowing children
to explore and experiment varied possibilities.

Language development is crucial during these years. Reading skills are always
coined with pre-reading skills that the children are involved in. Adults in the
environment can facilitate pre-reading skills by engaging children in conversations,
asking questions, introducing new or unfamiliar words etc. Hence, as adults in the
environment these needs should be addressed and facilitated in the context of play
where the natural drive to learn new skills are amplified and is relevant to the interest
of the child.

Children should be readers for life and not just readers in the school or reader for a
period, hence facilitator of the center can give clear expectations for children to
achieve certain skills. The habits that can be developed in a child can be; being a
strong reader, reading daily, discussing about the books and materials that they
have read and attempting to read different prints available in the environment

Key points facilitators should remember while promoting reading skills in children

Ask open ended questions:

‘Which was your favourite character in the story and why?’ – observing and reporting

‘Wonder, what’s happening?’ (While narrating a story) – encouraging curiosity

‘How might he be feeling?’ – exploring feelings and being empathetic

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‘What is he going to do next’ – Predicting

‘Can you think of a different story with the same characters?’ – creativity

‘Can you retell the story?’ – summarizing

Respond appropriately

Respond to children’s thinking and responses with praise and encouragement, which
will motivate them to express their ideas. Responses like; “Wow, you know a lot
about plants”, “That’s a very nice story that you have created”, “You are really good
at reading and your also paying attention on punctuation”.

Helping children complete their conversation

New language is always challenging, when children are learning to master the
language, they tend to make errors. Facilitators can help them by giving them cues,
correcting their errors and at the same time encouraging them. For example: “yes, it
is a horse, it’s also called a mare”.

1.7 Play way method in supporting readiness skills

Play way method is all about providing ample amount of independence to children.
The independence provided to children are windows of opportunity which offer to
them the success in the skill that they are mastering. Play a natural drive is essential
for development as it contributes to the physical, cognitive, social and emotional
well-being. Play also contributes to the other aspects of development such as
vocabulary, imagination, creativity and it also enhances the development of self.
These developments can be exhibited only if the opportunities for play are provided
adequately for children.

The terms ‘readiness’ and ‘play’ are two complex concepts that can be defined and
used in various ways. The term ‘school readiness’ consist of 5 dimensions namely,
cognition, physical development and well-being, language, social and emotional well-
being.

For children to be successful independent reader, they should be exposed to an

array of pre-reading activities which will help them be proficient at that skill. These
pre-reading activities can be designed to fit the needs, patterns and development of
children. In play way method when children are doing by themselves and learning to
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master a skill, they learn to problem solve, develop resilience and become
resourceful at helping themselves and others facing a similar problem. For reading
skills children should be exposed to an environment which is rich in talk and print,
which will help them achieve pre-reading as well as reading skills.

1.8 Reading Skills

1.8.1 Pre-reading Activities

Play-way method is a child centered approach, where the child acquires knowledge
and experience of the world outside through play. It is a child directed learning
process. Pre-reading activities are the skills required for literacy. In play-way method
though it may look like the child is playing, he/she is organising their thought
processes and vocabulary to work together for a skill called “Reading”. Many
activities can be conducted to trigger the reading skills in children.

 Shared reading: shared reading is an interactive reading experience that occurs

between an adult and a child. In shared reading children observe how the reader
read a book and explores the joy in reading. Though the adult reads the book,
children are involved in the reading experience by developing a sense of
excitement, commitment, encouragement, confidence and satisfaction. This
activity enables children to listen, will teach explicit reading skills and strategies,
will enhance children to deepen their vocabulary and expose children to varied
genres of books.
 Story time: narrating a story to children is the best way to grab their attention to
learn what an adult intends to teach. Using new words in the story and stressing
upon the word couple of times, would help them to master the word as well as
teach them the use of the word. Stories with repetitive phrases can be used to
teach children a phrase and the use of it in their everyday conversations.
Examples of books with repetitive phrases are:

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 The cat in the hat – Dr. Seuss

 Brown bear, brown bear, what
Name of the Activity: Race
do you see? – Bill Martin Jr &
Materials Required: a magnetic
Eric Carle board, magnetic letters, pictures of
 Bear on a bike – Stella different object with their names
(tin, can, apple, mat etc), basket or
Blackstone
bowls.
 Are you my mother? – P. D.
Procedure:
Eastman
 Setup the magnetic board in
These are examples of different the corner of the classroom
books with repetitive phrases that can  At the other corner place a
basket or bowl with magnet
be introduced in the early learning letters in it
environment to teach children new  Facilitator should call out
the name of the flashcard,
words, phrases and the use of it.
that she is picking
 Phonics: refers to associating the letter  According to the names
being called out, each child
or a group of letters to the sound that should run, pick the
they represent. 42 letter sounds are there corresponding first letter
which is called out and stick
in the English language, these sounds
it on to the board.
connect the letters to form a word.  For example, if the
Phonics improves children’s capability to facilitator picks the
flashcard with picture car,
recognise words and phrases, which will then the child should pick
in turn help them in reading. To learn to letter ‘C’ and stick it on the
board
use phonics, children need to listen to
the sounds and comprehend it, for this
child can be taught rhymes, songs, stories related to letter and letter sounds.
Once the letter sounds are taught to children, it needs to be reinforced. The
reinforcing of the sounds can be done by conducting activities and games for
children related to phonics.
 Singing rhymes or songs: songs and rhymes are vital in vocabulary development
because they allow children to listen to the vocabulary in a fun way. Songs and
rhymes grab the attention of children as it rhymes and has a catchy tune. While
teaching a rhyme or song children can be taught to do the actions of the rhyme,
this will enhance their interest and will motivate them to recite the rhyme or song.

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 Acting out characters: Facilitator can narrate a story to children and ask them to
act out their favourite character. While acting out the character, children should
be told to deliver dialogues of the character that they have selected.
 Discussions: open discussions during core hours of the center or during circle
time can be conducted to benefit children’s vocabulary. Common topics like
festivals, pets, food etc or familiar objects can be introduced in the center for
discussion. When these topics are discussed in the center, adult helps children to
connect to the world around and to go beyond.
 Timer sessions: each child can be given 10 mins as timer session, where each
child would talk to the adult of the center about any topic or event. For example: a
child who has a new sibling, can talk about his/her arrival, the preparation he did
for the new baby etc to the facilitator.
 Playing with puppets / dolls: like a book corner, a doll or puppet corner can be
incorporated in the early learning center. Children can use these puppets or dolls
to talk about their emotions,
feelings or can even create a
story. STORY: A GIRL IN THE PARK
 Completing the story: play way
method is all about play and One day, a girl named Chikku was walking in

embedding learning into it. the park. The park was beautiful, it had many

Completing the story is a game,
where the facilitator narrates one
line of the story and the rest of the
story should be completed by
children.
trees, flowers, benches, birds etc. Chikku was
admiring the beauty of the park and suddenly
she saw a ____________________________

1.8.2 Games:
 Find the partner:

This is card game, which can be changed according to the concept. The example is
given below to teach opposites. Small flash cards of opposites, with picture and word
should be place on the floor (for example: big, small, day, night etc). Facilitator
should play music and ask children to move around in the environment. When the

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music stops, children should stand on each flash card and search for his / her pair.
For example: if child A stands on ‘big’, he/she should find his pair.

This card game can be changed to teach different concepts such as, capital and
small letters, word and the action, matching the letter to the word etc.

 Make it say it:

Play dough is an activity that children enjoy doing. Children can be divided into
different groups; each group can be given a play dough. Facilitator can instruct
children to make different objects out of the clay and narrate a story according to the
models designed by them.

 Matching:

Choose five to six words from a book the child is reading. Print the words on cards.
To play the game, shuffle the cards and place them face down in rows. Children are
supposed to pick two cards. If the two cards match (rhyming) then the child keeps it,
if the cards do not match, the cards are replaced, and the next player gets the
chance.

DARK PARK CAT MAT

 Guess the sound:

Children should be given a set of letters. Adult in the early learning centre will have a
set of flash cards with names of different objects such as boat, apple, dog, key etc.
The adult in this activity will facilitate by picking each card and calling out the word
from the card. Children should guess the first letter and its sound by just listening to
the word.

 Secret Message:

This is an activity which incorporates resist painting into it. The facilitator should write
words or a story on a plain white sheet of paper, with white crayon. Children should
be given paints and brushes. Once children paint on the white sheet, the secret
message will be revealed. This message should be read out by the child.

This activity can be repeated to teach sight words for children.

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 Fishing the word:

A fishing rod with magnet attached to its end will be provided. Fish cut outs with
different words will be placed on the floor. The child is supposed to fish the word and
read it out loud. Once the child has collected the required number of words, they
have to create a story using the words.

Car Park

Conclusion

Play an intrinsic drive in children is the basis for learning. It motivates them to
explore, experience and interact with their surroundings. It makes their learning
meaningful and memorable. Play-way method is an excellent way of learning, as it
facilitates and provides a foundation for further development. Though traditionally,
play is confined to early childhood years, a growing body of research suggest that
play as a transactional method should be adopted for all age groups.

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