Preschool Through Grade 3 Marble Magic Play As The Foundatio ✓ Solved

Preschool Through Grade 3 Marble Magic Play as the Foundation

Young children learn best when they are given large blocks of time to actively invent and follow through on a variety of meaningful play scenarios. Whether children are building with blocks, acting as chefs or mayors in dramatic play, engaging with creative arts materials, or creating miniature worlds, they are growing in all aspects of development. At A Child’s Place School in Lincroft, New Jersey, my colleagues and I strive to create the highest quality learning environment for our students, all of whom are 3 to 7 years old. Our investigations consistently demonstrate that through consistent play with others, even the youngest children will reach beyond what’s typically expected for their ages, both behaviorally and cognitively. Self-initiated, teacher-supported play enables children to explore, experiment, and authentically increase development in literacy, math, science, and creative thinking. Until children engage in personal, meaningful play experiences to build background knowledge, highly structured formal education is developmentally inappropriate. The benefits of play to social, emotional, physical, creative, and cognitive growth are widely accepted and appreciated by parents, teachers, and administrators of preschool programs.

Once children enter the early primary grades, however, the pressures of a hurried curriculum and standardized testing can challenge even the strongest advocates of play. As a result, in kindergarten through third grade, play is frequently excluded from the curriculum to make room for structured academic experiences. The value of engaging in spontaneous, self-initiated play reaches far beyond academics. It enables children to boost their creativity and helps them find their place in the world, especially within their classroom and school.

One of the many special things about A Child’s Place School is that teachers and administrators collaboratively engage in action research to better understand and serve students. In this article, I discuss a study my colleagues and I conducted with children from three different classes and across multiple ages, closely observing them engage with a variety of materials—from traditional materials like marbles to construction materials like PVC pipes. This exploration took place in the Big Room, a large community space in the school, which offers all members varied opportunities to make connections during the intentional learning experiences provided by the teaching staff.

Authentic learning through play began our study as a large group of 4- to 7-year-olds collaborated in the Big Room to build a giant marble run with baseboard molding, PVC pipes, and elbows. The construction of marble runs gained complexity once the materials were presented in a common space. The older children naturally stepped into leadership roles as they shared their work and knowledge with their younger peers. Throughout the year, all of the children increased their knowledge of inclines, symmetry, balance, speed, and gravitational pull.

A group of 3- and 4-year-olds viewed the marble run as a large toy. They dropped marbles at the top of the incline and chased them to the end of the run. After many repetitions, they gained insights about the relationship between marble size and travel success. For instance, when a 3-year-old named Juan mentioned the need to use medium-sized marbles, it demonstrated his understanding of comparative terms, leading to further explorations and experiments with different marble weights and their effects on movement.

Mark, a 5-year-old, pursued his exploration of marbles in a hollow bicycle tire, counting how many times they made a full rotation. This led to discussions among children about concepts like gravity and centrifugal force, evidencing their engagement with scientific ideas through play. We documented these interactions, which became immensely valuable for extending the children's knowledge into new concepts.

We observed that through play, children initiated inquiries emerging from their experiences, allowing them to explore extensive learning opportunities. This play also stimulated their imagination, enabling them to engage in drama and negotiation, further enhancing social interaction and language growth. Teachers served as researchers, documenting the children’s learning processes, which provided us meaningful data to reflect upon and share with parents.

Fostering Interdisciplinary Growth Through Play

In our investigations, play was the foundation from which many other learning opportunities arose. Beyond the focus on scientific inquiry, children’s engagement with the marble runs allowed them to negotiate roles, create rules, and engage in cooperative problem-solving. They even added imaginative elements, assigning names and characteristics to their marbles.

Literacy, mathematics, and artistic expression were all integrated into the marble play. For instance, children documented their experiments, which involved counting and measuring the marble runs, leading to applied mathematics. They also used artistic methods to design and build their ideas, thereby highlighting the intersections of creativity, science, and engineering.

Sharing the outcomes of these learning experiences in newsletters and parent-teacher discussions helped illustrate the crucial role of play in development. Engaging parents in understanding and interpreting their children’s inquiries encourages them to become involved in their learning journeys, making play a perceived right rather than a luxury.

Conclusion

Our experience with the marble investigation illustrates the substantial potential for play to facilitate rich learning across various domains. Developmentally appropriate practices that center around play augment children's endurance for learning while fostering deeper cognitive skills. By remaining attuned to children’s needs, educators can harness the transformative power of play in fostering a dynamic and engaging learning environment.

References

• Edwards, C., Gandini, L., & Forman, G. (1998). The Hundred Languages of Children: The Reggio Emilia Approach- Advanced Reflections. Westport, CT: Ablex.
• Elkind, D. (2007). The Power of Play: How Spontaneous, Imaginative Activities Lead to Happier, Healthier Children. Boston, MA: Da Capo Lifelong.
• Nell, M.L., Drew, W.F., & Bush, D.E. (2013). From Play to Practice: Connecting Teachers’ Play to Children’s Learning. Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children.
• Smith, N.A. (2009). The Message of Froebel and Other Essays. Charleston, SC: BiblioLife.
• Vygotsky, L.S. (1978). Mind in Society: The Development of Higher Psychological Processes. M. Cole, V. John-Steiner, S. Scribner, & E. Souberman (Eds.). Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.