Play is a fantastic way to learn. Research shows that students learn more while moving, even if the content is unrelated (Cook et al 2008). Games and activities that have a consciousness of the way they are illuminating concepts can harness this power of the movement/ neural pathway connection even further.
The program “Playful Concepts” draws on research that highlights the value of connecting learning to movement:
- McIntyre in Pinnegar and Daynes (2007, 27) say it is “embodied tradition as the way of knowing that provides the soundest basis for truth”.
- When people move in new ways this also allows neural pathways to flow in new ways that expand thinking (Hough and Hough in Luton 2015, 168).
- Carney et al.’s (2010) research showed that different body postures affected people’s self-confidence and in turn, their behaviour.
Thus learning is always designed with the idea of movement and physicality as part of the program.
Some of the concepts covered in this program of play include:
- Environmental stewardship
- Care and concern for others
- Understanding Recycling
- Planets and solar-systems
- Global warming
- 101 Economics
Animal pack behaviour
Contact us to find out more about how the program can be delivered for children and provide professional development experiences and resources for educators.