This past week I focused on the concept
of “boy” vs. “girl” with one of my littles. Rather than breaking out the flash
cards, which he would not have enjoyed at all, we learned through play.
One of my roles as a pediatric speech-language
therapist is to be a coach. I not only work directly with children, but I also take
the time to help parents, educators, and others to learn how to work independently
with their children at home. After all, most learning happens outside of specified therapy time. Learning to model language is one of the top
coaching topics during our therapy sessions and the workshops I’ve taught in
the past. So, I thought it definitely deserved a blog post and possibly a series of them. ;)
We're going to start with using play as an engine for modeling language and go from there.
If I’m being honest, I think we tend to
shy away from using play as our engine for learning simply because it’s
uncomfortable to us adults. We don't understand it and the urgency of it as children do. It was uncomfortable for me at first too and I had worked with
kids my entire life. I totally bought into the lie that "play is frivilous" when in fact, it's the complete opposite and there are studies upon studies now to show that. We've also been led astray by the way we're bombarded by all things labeled “educational”
that include TV shows, iPad apps, flash cards, noisy toys, etc.
Can I be real with ya’ll for a minute? Play is good for EVERYBODY. Even adults. I would argue, especially adults, because we don't play enough. Play is creativity. It's how new ideas are born. Through play and experimenting with our surroundings, we solve world problems.
In Greg McKeown's book, Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less (highly recommend), he quotes Stuart Brown, founder of the National Institute for Play, who states that 'Play leads to brain plasticity, adaptability and creativity. Nothing fires up the brain like play."
When it came to using play as an engine
for learning. It took me saying (to myself):
“Self. Get over yourself. Get on the
floor and really be silly. Get over the fact that you’re an adult and should be
“responsible” and that the mess you’re making will need to be cleaned up. Get
over the fact that you will pay for crawling through the tunnel with 10,000
chiropractor appointments. Enjoy it. Meet them at their level and grow up from there.”
That is what it took for me to be better
at play. Also, practice. So much practice. It’s like relearning how to be a kid
all over again, but then be an adult at the same time. A very interesting
balance there, so give yourself grace.
And as for the “educational” crap. Don’t
buy it. As in literally and figuratively. Especially not for younger children. Unless
it’s a toy that has many, many uses and is quiet (aka an open-ended toy). I’ve
worked with hundreds of children, researched many, many hours and have observed
and learned from other therapists and teachers what rich and poor learning both
look like and technology is not a strong mechanism for whole-hearted learning.
And noisy toys are not beneficial for teaching our children to communicate or
think independently.
Okay…moving on.
For early learners, movement is key.
Play, and I mean P-L-A-Y is non-negotiable. Like that messy, goofy, make adults
crazy kinda play.
That doesn’t mean you can’t give your
child a 15-30-minute seat in front of the television to get dinner going, talk
to your partner, etc. It just means don’t be fooled to think that there is
rich, learning going on. Devices are not a solid tool for teaching and can
seriously do more harm than good, so let’s explore what is.
Teaching Through Play Goes a Little Like This...
The Scenario
Modeling “Boy” vs. “Girl”
While Playing with Doll House and Cars
This is a girl (reaching
for the girl).
I'm putting the girl in the
house.
She is a girl.
The girl is in the house.
Let's take the girl out of
the house.
The girl is out of the
house.
Now I have the boy.
I have the boy and you have
the girl.
The boy is walking out the
door.
The boy is going to the
garage to get the car.
The boy is in the car with
the girl (pointing to each).
The boy and girl are riding
in the car (pointing again to each while you say the correct term).
If you didn't catch it, the target words or
phrases are:
"The boy is" and "The girl
is" or, "girl" and "boy" and they are repeated...A
LOT.
Think of it as blending the child's interests
with targeted concepts they need to learn and using play as the engine for
learning. The play part is what makes it fun AND engaging.
We can gain a child’s focus through play, which
is required for learning. Focus or engagement is essential for learning. If a
child is unable to engage in an activity for some period of time, then learning
can be challenging. This is just one benefit of play. It exercises a child’s
brain and holds their attention, slowly increasing the space the child has for maintaining
attention. And once you’ve caught their attention through play, no matter the
activity, you can typically weave modeling words, ideas, scenarios and
situations into the activity. It will take practice and creativity on your
part, but you’ve got this!
One of my favorite podcasts to listen to is Teach Me To Talk with Laura Mize, a
pediatric speech-language pathologist. She really emphasizes how important it
is to teach concepts and MODEL what we want our children to learn, before we
test them through repeatedly asking questions.
What I’ve found too is that when we model
repeatedly and focus on the teaching,
during play (1) our kiddos tell us when they want to try it themselves, or (2)
they begin using the words, actions, movement, etc. spontaneously without
requiring us to ask them questions such as, “what’s this,” or instructing them
to “say this.” Trust me…I get impatient sometimes too and go into “question
mode” and whew…nearly every time it backfires on me.
Teach. Teach. Teach.
They need time.
They need our patience.
They need lots and lots of modeling, before
they're ready to ride solo.
Kind of like when my husband gives me directions
on how to fix my computer. There is a lot of repetition and let's be honest...a
ton of direct modeling (aka showing me how it's done) multiple times, then him
watching me do it myself. Again, multiple times. Before, finally, I'm in fact
confident to move forward and actually try it myself.
Samesies with the kiddos.
This form of play and teaching continues on and
on and on. I'm talking potentially 1-3 play sessions, maybe more. Until one
day...they begin to feel comfortable using the information they've gained and
voila. They’ve learned.
Teach, teach, teach.
Watch the magic unfold.
You got this.
Every bit of it.
Even today.
Michelle
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