approaches that create more authentic experiences and respond to
children's interests. Marianne Sargent explains.
Recent years have seen a shift in educational policy towards giving educators more freedom and flexibility, particularly in terms of how early learning experiences are planned and delivered. The Early Years Foundation Stage now places much more emphasis on how children learn rather than what they should learn. It asks that practitioners provide a learning environment that fosters independence, intrinsic motivation and creative thinking.
The role-play area is becoming less static, with a step away from the traditional corner set up to reflect current topics with purpose-made resources that have specific functions. Free-flowing provision between the indoor and outdoor areas provides for better freedom of movement, offering children the opportunity to set up role-play scenarios wherever they want.
This, coupled with access to natural objects and materials from real life, is creating a more authentic play experience that helps children make better sense of the world.
Practitioners are also now recognising the potential of role play for developing creativity by exploring children's personal interests. It is becoming a much more imaginative play arena with the use of open-ended resources that better lend themselves to creative and symbolic play.
CASE STUDY
Ely and Caerau
Ely and Caerau Integrated Children's Centre in Cardiff exemplifies a highly reflective approach that involves the creative use of role play to provide a meaningful, relevant and motivating curriculum for the children in its care. Head of the centre Carolyn Asante describes a process of ongoing reflection and planning that results in role-play scenarios popping up at short notice as well as constant installations that are developed to reflect changing interests.
'It can be anywhere in the nursery at any time,' says Mrs Asante. 'The planning here is very dynamic. You've got to act quite quickly otherwise the moment will be lost if you wait too long. The team meets and plans every day, so the role play grows and develops and extends during the day, during the week, during the term, depending on where the children take it. I guess that's a fairly unique feature in terms of how fluid the planning is to reflect that.'
The centre, which is based in one of the most deprived areas in Cardiff, houses a local education authority nursery encompassing a 40-place English-medium class and 32-place Welsh-medium class. Both work in parallel and share planning and resources. Each has a home corner, which Mrs Asante explains is essential due to the high number of children who enter the nursery with speech, language and communication needs.
'The home corner is something that all children can identify with as a starting point, but we develop it according to their interests. So if they are interested in cooking, we will cook within the home corner. We will also change the home corner to reflect current themes such as different festivals, for instance.'
Keeping it real
Mrs Asante highlights the importance of planning real experiences that develop from the children's starting points, and providing authentic resources to support their play.
'We've got a role-play builder's yard outside and we had a small group who were interested in building walls. So we took them out to a building site to see a real wall being built, got them the proper materials to use and invited some builders in to build a wall with them. Another group of children were very interested in mechanics and fixing the bikes, so we visited a local garage and got resources from there to set up a garage outside.
'The learning is so much more powerful when you are starting with the child and so much richer. The children's involvement levels are very high because you're valuing and respecting what they are interested in. We can support their agenda rather than just muscling in and imposing our ideas about what they should be learning.
'We can then bring the Foundation Stage into their interests rather than squash their interests into a fixed curriculum. They're getting everything in terms of learning and outcomes, but they are dictating the agenda in terms of the process of how we do it.'
Open-ended resources
As well as investing in purpose made role-play equipment, the nursery uses a selection of found objects and junk materials that are equally as valuable because of their flexibility and potential to spark the children's curiosity and imagination, says Mrs Asante.
She adds that this is also true in terms of the settings and spaces the nursery provides for role play. 'You don't want it looking like a park outside; you want it open-ended so children can take their play in different directions and objects can be more than one thing.
'We have a cave built out of stone so it looks like a real cave, but it can be whatever the children want it to be. We've left provocations and challenges in there for the children that they then take in any direction they want. For example, we left a letter from a giant, the children have found dinosaur eggs in there and they've been pirates looking for treasure.'
RECOMMENDED RESOURCES
An enabling environment for creative and imaginative role play needs a good range of open-ended resources.
Dividers and dens
On the market are a wide selection of dens and enclosures that the children can inhabit and transform into the role-play setting of their choosing. (See also pages 8-10 and 30-31.) For settings with limited space, dividers are a good option that allow areas to be fenced off and temporarily covered to create an enclosed role-play area.
Early Years Direct supplies individual beechwood room divider panels incorporating mirrored, drywipe, chalkboard and cork surfaces (mirror/drywipe £140, chalkboard/cork £120). The panels can be linked together.
Community Playthings has a hardwood role-play 'corner' comprising posts, arches, shelves and panels that can be configured according to available space. See website for options and prices.
Cosy offers a selection of outdoor dividers including a set of three small 60cm x 122cm (£120) and a set of two large 90cm x 120cm (£139).
Outdoor role play
TTS's open-ended resources for outdoor role play include an Enchanted Wood range, available individually or as a set. The Enchanted Wood Special Offer (£1,549.75) has an Outdoor Role-Play Centre, Outdoor Shop, Trestle, Busy Bench and Outdoor Block Cart.
Open-ended objects
As well as the traditional purpose-made resources that serve specific functions, there are many objects and materials available that aim to promote creative and symbolic play.
Heuristic play materials lend themselves particularly well to open-ended play. Reflections on Learning has a very large selection including wooden pots, bowls, disks, cubes, spools, balls and onion tops, as well as packs of sequinned fabrics (£19.99) and a treasure basket collection (£89.99).
Yellow Door provides a number of exploratory objects that serve a multitude of purposes. These include a set of six textured natural balls (£15), a set of 12 natural sorting stones in three different sizes and four colours (£15), and a Heuristic Play Starter Set containing 70 wooden objects and five storage bags (£66).
Early Excellence supplies a wide selection of themed role-play resources as well as more open-ended objects, including a set of six willow balls (£13.50), a set of 20 pieces of bamboo in different shapes and sizes (£25) and a set of 24 wooden rings in two sizes (£10.50).
The real thing
It is also important to provide a range of objects and materials that will add authenticity to role play. The best bit about these resources is that local suppliers might even offer you some for free. Try sourcing:
- bricks, stones and building tools from builders' merchants and DIY stores
- cooking pots, pans and utensils from charity shops
- vehicle parts from scrapyards and garages.
- recycled plant pots and seed trays from gardeners at the local allotment.
MORE INFORMATION
Community Playthings, www.communityplaythings.co.uk
Cosy, www.cosydirect.com
Creative Role Play in the Early Years by Alistair Bryce-Clegg
Early Excellence, www.shop.earlyexcellence.com
Early Years Direct, www.earlyyearsdirect.com
Early Years Play and Learning: developing social skills and co-operation by Pat Broadbead
TTS Group, www.tts-group.co.uk
Yellow Door, www.yellow-door.net.
