Powerful Play Tips
Read these 4 Powerful Play Tips tips to make your life smarter, better, faster and wiser. Each tip is approved by our Editors and created by expert writers so great we call them Gurus. LifeTips is the place to go when you need to know about Child Education tips and hundreds of other topics.
Building Blocks
Just blocks? Yes, just blocks. Here is what a child learns whild playing with simple building blocks:
*Creativity-there's no right or wrong way to play with blocks. What ever the child does is right. This is also a great esteem builder.
*Problem solving-when a child figures out how to "bridge" a gap by placing one block across two others, he has figured out problem solving and balance.
*Cognitive learning-with unit blocks, children learn how two "half-blocks" are the same length and a "whole block", and two triangle blocks create a square block. This promotes an understanding of relationships between items.
*Sesory exploration-toddlers learn much by simply carrying the blocks around, feeling the texture (both in the hands and in the mouth), banging them together to make a unique noise, and filling a container and dumping it out.
*Spatial relationships-learning what makes blocks balance as well as learning how to manipulate his body around a tower of blocks so as not to knock it down.
*Social skills-children build together learning to negotiate, share, cooperate, and work as a team.
*Patterns-building symmetrical towers and structures with perfectly even sides shows that a child is beginning to understand patterns. Colored blocks can also fit in to this patterning stage.
Don't discount the "old fashioned" bucket of blocks as a key learning tool for your child. Let your child show you a thing or two!
Types of Construction Toys
There are many types of construction toys on the market, all developing different skills.
The most common are plain wooden building blocks.
Locking blocks such as Lego, Duplo, Mega Blocks, and others offer a more sophisticated building material.
The classics like Tinker Toys and Lincoln Logs are still a favorite of children today.
Similar to Tinker Toys are the newer free-form building sets called Toobers and Zots.
There are construction toys for all ages. Find a set your child likes and have it grow with him. (A good example of this is the Lego series, which starts with large blocks for toddlers and graduates into smaller blocks-that are compatible-as your child grows. This will keep his interest up and keep you from having too many different types of small pieces strewn around the house.
A child's work is play
When children are playing, they are "working". They are learning so much so quickly during free play time: everything from budding social skills with puppets to pre-reading skills with colored shapes.
Free, self-directed play time is vital to a child building a firm "foundation" for learning. It is during playtime in the early years that children learn how to learn. They do not need to learn letters and numbers prior to formal schooling (though some will). If children have the foundation for learning, they will pick up the "facts and figures" easily when they are introduced to them in the formal school setting.
Parents want the best for their children and try to keep up with every new trend in early childhood development from playing Mozart lullabies to flashing bold, black and white flashcards. The motives of the parents are noble-they want their child to have the best of every opportunity. But, it is not the "academic achievements" of a three-year-old that will determine her future as a student. Through play, she will not only learn the fundamentals of exploration, creativity, and a broad range of skills, but she has also grown to love learning, which will propel her even farther than those children who have grown to view learning as a "chore" to be completed and approved of. The child who loves to learn sees learning as an adventure filled with excitement and personal fulfillment.
Peek-A-Boo
We all know the game "Peek-a-Boo". Every adult who comes in contact with a baby automatically assumes the high-pitched voice, covers her eyes, and then squeals, "peek-a-boo!" while uncovering her eyes.
What most people don't know, however, is the significance of a game of peek-a-boo. It is not only fun and elicits smiles and giggles, but it is teaching object permanance (even though I can't see you, I know you're still there). This is a very important concept for young children to learn, especially as they are left in daycare or when they begin school.
There is a sense of security built in knowing that mommy and daddy will come back. Even though I can't see them right now, they still exist and I will see them again.
| Guru Spotlight |
| Sheri Ann Richerson |
