Learning through play: Is free or guided play better?

My New Life

Kate Garlinge

Loveverytoddler, Toddlerplay, Toddlereducation, Playtolearn, Smartbaby, Babymilestones, Toddleractivities, Loveverybaby, Babyeducation, Strongtoddler, Toddlermilestones, Toddlersubscriptionbox, Toddlertoys, Earlylearningprogram, Babydevelopment, Sustainabletoys, Learningtoys, Learningthroughplay, Strongbaby, Babysubscriptionbox, Educationaltoys, Playkits, Parenting, Babytoys, Playtime, Toddlerdevelopment, Babyactivities, Smarttoddler, Lovevery, Kids & Family, Babyplay

4.7 • 654 Ratings

🗓️ 18 May 2022

⏱️ 17 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Play has so much to teach us, children and parents alike. Sometimes parents can get a little too involved in their child’s play, particularly with the extra cool toys. When does our guidance become interference? And what amount of direction is appropriate?

Dave Neale joins Jessica Rolph on this episode to help us strike the right balance. Dave is a researcher in the psychology of play at the Centre for Research on Play in Education, Development and Learning at the University of Cambridge.

Key Takeaways:

[1:13] Dave explains the ‘sweet spot’ when a parent can provide support while not being too involved in the child’s play.

[3:20] Playing and its link with structured learning.

[5:30] How to find the balance between helping children achieve the goal of a game or letting them just explore the materials.

[8:18] Play with your children, engagement and becoming an entertained play partner are the most important factors.

[9:23] The effects of a parent who is not sufficiently involved.

[12:23] What is Dave’s favorite activity to do with 0-12 months old babies?

Mentioned in this episode:

Brought to you by Lovevery.com

Learn more about Dave Neale

Centre for Research on Play in Education, Development & Learning (PEDAL)

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Parenthood is a time of so much change for you and your baby.
0:13.8	A little reliable information can go a long way towards making this new life a good life.
0:20.0	I'm Jessica Rolfe, and this is my new life,
0:24.0	a love every podcast. While the science aligns on what's healthy for a baby's brain development,
0:30.1	when it comes to how to care for our babies, there's a seemingly endless supply of competing
0:34.9	perspectives. Parents are swimming in advice on sleep, feeding,
0:39.8	parenting philosophies. In this season of the podcast, we aim to provide a variety of curated
0:46.1	perspectives so you can make informed choices for your family.
0:54.5	Play. It's got so much to teach us, children and parents alike. But sometimes we parents
1:00.3	can get a little too involved with our child's play. When does our guidance become
1:05.8	interference? And what amount of direction is appropriate? Here to help us strike the right balance is Dave Neal.
1:12.8	He is a researcher in the psychology of play and learning at the Center for Play, Education, Development, and Learning at the University of Cambridge.
1:21.3	So, Dave, you've spent a lot of time studying play.
1:24.4	And when you talk about this kind of sweet spot in your research, you talk
1:28.2	about the sweet spot of support that a parent can provide while not being too involved. Can you kind of
1:34.2	walk me through an example of a parent you've observed that strikes that right balance?
1:38.7	Yeah, I think there are two ways of like looking at it. I mean, some play experiences and other
1:43.7	kinds of interaction involve some
1:45.4	sort of problem solving or attempting to achieve some kind of goal. And in some of my research,
1:50.1	I looked at parents and infants playing with a ring stacking toy. And so some of the parents
1:57.9	would, for example, if their child just looked at the toy and maybe picked up and mouth the rings but didn't really do anything else with them, then the parent would sort of put a ring on themselves and show that that was something you could do.
2:11.5	And then the baby might try and do that, but they might struggle to properly get it on.
	...

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