Young children learn through play! As your students interact with one another, they’re learning to solve problems while developing the skills they’ll needed to grow and learn. Here are three unique ways to incorporate more play into the classroom:
- Make Learning an Adventure
Instead of describing a new topic, have students use their imagination to visualize that they’re right in the middle of what you’re teaching. For example, when teaching children about ocean life, turn your classroom into an ocean! Display photos of animals and plants around the classroom and have your students pretend they’re scuba diving and exploring these new things. - Use Manipulatives While Teaching
Manipulatives don’t just have to be used when you’re teaching your students math concepts! Try using toy cars to practice blending sounds or letter tiles to teach children about new words. - Act it Out
Whether your students are telling you a story or you’re teaching them a new concept, encourage them to act it out and move as they do so! For example, you can incorporate math concepts into daily play by asking questions such as “how far can you throw a ball” or “how high can you jump?”