CHCPR301C - Why Play Is Important

[Julz76]

Your Assignment Module Number and Heading: CHCPR301C - PROVIDE EXPERIENCES TO SUPPORT CHILDREN’S PLAY AND LEARNING
Your Assignment Type: Standard Question
Currently Working in Childcare? No
Your knowledge: Beginner

Your Question?
Write a paper explaining why play is so important for children’s development and how service providers can design the environment and the facility programs to ensure that:

the individual needs of children are met
cultural diversity requirements, the need for choice and gender interests are met
the safety of children is, at all times, supported
guidance, relating to expected behaviours and actions is provided
behavioural rules and expectations are communicated and enforced
acceptable behaviours are acknowledged and reinforced
play is used to extend children’s interests and learning
a range of experiences are provided
children are encouraged to experience new things and to include other children in their play
you interact appropriately with children and provide suitable supervision
you ensure that inappropriate play does not persist
excursions are used to extend children’s interests
children become lifelong learners
you take an interest in and enjoy children
organisational policies, procedures and standards facilitate learning
programs continuously improve
programs meet accreditation requirements
Explain the principles of the National Quality Framework (NQF) and the National Quality Standards (NQS) and the concepts of the Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF).

What is your answer so far or What have you done so far as an attempt to solve this question?
Play is important as it gives children the opportunity to explore the world around them and learn to cope in different environments. It gives them a chance to be creative and develop their own interests. Play-based experiences provide children with opportunities to build their personal identities as successful and responsible learners. In play children are able to learn through their senses, make connections with their prior knowledge, practice and master learning, sustain concentration, take risks and stretch themselves in enjoyable and non-threatening contexts. One of the greatest benefits of playing is to assist with the development of social competence. Children can build relationships, learn to resolve conflicts, negotiate and regulate their behaviours. In play, children usually have increased feelings of success and optimism as they act as their own agents and make their own choices. Playing is a known stress release; it is often linked to child wellbeing. Physically active play allows children to test and develop all types of motor skills. It promotes significant health and wellbeing benefits.
Service providers can design the environment and the facility programs making sure educators know the children and families in their centre; they assess, document children’s learning and know their interests. The information will be documented for each child if they need bottle, breast, dummy, blankie, held to fall asleep etc. This will ensure the individual needs for each child is meet. Sleep, rest and quiet areas should be in all rooms to allow all children to rest when required. A kitchen facility will be present to supply food for all age groups and cultures when required.
The need for choice and gender interestes can be met by by providing toys to suit the gender of children who will use them. Trucks for boys and dolls for girls will be preferred by the children. However staff should not influence children choices, if a girl wishes to play with trucks and a boy with a doll, it is theor choice and this should be allowed and accepted without comment. offer encouragement and suppport for both boys and girls to participate in a full range of experiences and resources.
To teach about cultures the centre can provide books, videos, stories, pictures and clothing can all be used to teach children about differences in people, teaching them that differences is not something to fear but something that can be learned from and about. This will help develop thinking habits that will enable them to cope with difference, value diversity and embrace new things.
The safety of the children is paramount at all times when in care, the design of the facility should have child proof locks on all entries/exits, a sign in and sign out register with only documented parents being allowed to pick up the child. Fire drills should be taught and practiced regularly so the children learn about safety, spills should be cleaned straight away following procedures, kitchen hygiene and food handling should follow procedures so as to avoid infections and food posioning, personal hygiene should follow procedures, sun protection procedures, procedures for rubbish control, behavioural expectations and rules for the children to prevent harm, immunisation and infection control procedures are followed, suitable nutrition and hydration needs are met and safe childproof fencing and gates.
Guidance relating to expected behaviours and actions is provided by staff the centre will have rules applicable to the behaviours of all children in care. These rules may include sharing, not harming, participating in drills, helping clean up, eating and drinking, staying in the centre, not interrupting. All rules will be consistently enforced, but first will be clearly explained to all children in lanuage that the child can understand. All rules will be made clear and enforced consistently at all times, ensuring thatthe children are clear about the outcomes of behaviours that are not acceptable, treating all the children in care equitably and ensuring that expectations are firm, but kind and realistic.
To extend childrens interests and learning, a majority of materials will be open ended, so that the children can adapt them to there own interests and agendas. Staff can extend the play and help children learn more by responding to play with the children ie: if a child is playing with farm animals, staff will praise the child for their efforts and then extend the play by encouraging the child to name and talk about the various animals. Also by extending play and guiding play. It is the staffs job to build upon childrens existing interests and motivation and provide a wide range of experiences. Staff will nuture curiosity, help children understand the world, and make learning fun.
The centre provides a range of experiences that allow children to collaborate and solve problems together like cooking a meal or cake, work on a puzzle or team games as well as individual experiences such as drawing painting building reading and problem solving, this is when the staff will get to know the childrens needs and interests better.
Children are encouraged with feedback, praise and acknowledgement to try new things and include other children in their play by the staff who will encourage and facilitate enthusiastic, playful and enjoyable interactions amongst children by pointing out the fun children have in performing tasks together, by playing with the children and leading by example, and by showing interaction can be fun so the children will want to get involved. Staff will help children when requested to achieve what they intend to achieve, they will be supported in their endeavours. Staff encourage children to read by reading to them, exercise by exercising with them, encourage them to develop numerical ability by making up games that invole numbers and counting.
Staff will interact appropriately with the children and provide suitable supervision. Babies require stimulation where staff will speak to them in a soothing tone voice, but also louder, more attention grabbing interactions such as clapping hands. Much of their time will require interaction and stimulation from and with staff. Staff will allow children to lead play as they will learn a great deal about the children in their care, if children are able to lead play they will often become for vocal and communicative. Staff will have an understanding of the age and developmental stages and needs of the children in their care and will design and develop play opportunities that will be interesting, enjoyable and through which the children will learn. Staff will be enthusiatic and playful when playing with the children this keeps the children engaged in play.

The National Quality Framework
The National Quality framework is made up of three components:
• The National Quality Standard that give families clear information about the quality of early childhood education and school age care services they can expect their children to receive.
• A national quality rating system with five levels and including a quality rating for seven key areas of childhood development.
• An Early Years Learning Framework that guides educators in developing play based learning and development activities for children in early childhood education and school age care settings

Structure of the National Quality Standard
The National Quality Standard comprises guiding principles, quality areas, standards and elements. There are
seven quality areas in the National Quality Standard, which capture aspects critical to the provision of quality
early childhood education and care and outside school hours care services, including educational concept and
practice, structural quality, interactions between educators and children and targeting services to meet the needs
of families and local communities.
The quality areas are:
1. Educational program and practice
2. Children’s health and safety
3. Physical environment
4. Staffing arrangements, including staff-to-child ratios and qualifications
5. Relationships with children
6. Collaborative partnerships with families and communities
7. Leadership and service management
Six principles apply across all seven quality areas of the NQS. These principles inform the delivery of quality early childhood education.
The principles include
1. The rights of the child are paramount
2. Children are successful, competent and capable learners.
3. Equity, inclusion and diversity
4. Valuing Australia’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures
5. The role of the parents and families is respected and supported
6. high expectations for children, educators and service providers.


The EYLF–Belonging, Being and Becoming
The EYLF outlines the key principles and significant practices that underpin and guide the work of all early childhood educators and clarifies current understandings about how children learn. The aim of the EYLF is to extend and enrich childrens learning. It guides early childhood educators in developing quality early childhood programs in order to ensure that children in care settings experience quality teaching and learning.
The Framework puts children’s learning at the core and comprises three inter-related elements:
Principles, Practice and Learning Outcomes.
All three elements are fundamental to early childhood pedagogy and curriculum decision-making.
The Framework conveys the highest expectations for all children’s learning from birth to five years and through the transitions to school.
It communicates these expectations through the following five Learning Outcomes:
• Children have a strong sense of identity
• Children are connected with and contribute to their world
• Children have a strong sense of wellbeing
• Children are confi dent and involved learners
• Children are effective communicators.

Description and Message:
I just wanted to know if I am on the right track. I am not sure if I am tying everything together ok and I am beginning to struggle with the last couple of points.
you ensure that inappropriate play does not persist - here I was writing about supervision and that staff intervene when deemed necessary that the children cannot solve the issue themselves, either standing between the children if needed or changing the focus to another activity so the children go their own way.
excursions are used to extend children’s interests - here I was writing with parental permission children can be taken on excursions to the zoo, library, strawberry farm, to broaden their horizons and teach them new skills and interests.
children become lifelong learners-???
you take an interest in and enjoy children - here doI write that I am interested in the children and how they learn and play together and enjoy seeing them achieve things and grow with new experiences.
organisational policies, procedures and standards facilitate learning - all staff are given policies and procedures to learn and adhere to, so all tasks are followed in the same manor and all other staff know what is expected.
programs continuously improve - staff meetings are held to talk about policies and procedures and any suggestions or changes are listed and altered to help with the health, safety and running of the centre.
programs meet accreditation requirements - All staff are up to date with the NQF/NQS & EYKF so all policies, procedures and training is up to the accreditation requirements.

Am I on the right track here do the answers seem ok or am I taking the wrong path?

Thanks

[Lorina]

A very detailed response!

When tying in the National Quality Framework and NQS focus on the aspects of play and how that is contributed into an early childhood setting and how these benefit children in play based learning. For e.g:

Educational Program and Practice
Physical Environment

With the EYLF, using a play based approach is embedded throughout the curriculum. Have a read through this and see if it can give you an idea on what to include about play using the EYLF:

Understanding the Early Years Learning Framework

you ensure that inappropriate play does not persist

You could also add using positive reinforcement and encouragement to remind children of limits and guideline. For e.g. "we keep the sand in the sandpit", "we use our walking feet inside".

excursions are used to extend children’s interests

You could also add incursions where instead of children leaving the centre you can get entertainement to come to the centre instead, based on children's interest. For e.g. "Reptile Man". http://members.ozemail.com.au/~mmichie/excursions.html

you take an interest in and enjoy children

Yes, how you engage in their play, follow and extend on their interests, provide experiences which facilitate in their learning and development.

The rest of the points in the section along with the information you've added are fine and nothing that I can think of needs to be added to this.

Your response is well thought out and everything makes sense. All I would suggest is with the NQS and EYLF add something about how that links in with the importance of play.

Hope This Helps!

,
L.A

[samanthajfrid]

hi when it comes to answering questions regarding the nqf, nqs or the eylf are we allowed to copy the the info given and just reference it? i am new to studying and am really struggling with the understand and answering of questions regarding these.

example :

What Element from the NQS specifically stipulates that effective hygiene practices should be promoted and implemented, (for example hand washing, coughing, dental hygiene and ear care)? (100-150 words)

i am struggling to answer this and other questions regarding the nqs,nqf and eylf.

I am not after answers i am just after information on how to answer i honestly feel like the answers are right there in front of me and i am just not seeing it.

cheers