Play and development Flashcards
Describe play
functional - has no obvious external goal
structural - includes play signals (eg play fac), no aggression, repeated exaggerated behavior
criteria - more criteria met more agree it’s play (children and adults good agreement of what is play)
Describe the how types of play are characterised?
- How social:
- Solitary play
- Parallel play: play near others but no influence on behaviour
- Associative play: separate activities but will exchange toy etc
- Cooperative play: (most advanced) work towards common goal
- How complex:
- Unoccupied play: Not doing much
- Manipulative/practice play: physical activity/ sensorimotor
- Constructive play: making something
- Socio-dramatic play: make-believ (simple 18m+ / social 3/4y)
- Rule-based games: most advanced (Piaget)
Everything co-exist so you don’t move from one to the other
What happens in the development of pretend play?
- Detaches from reality:
- Firstly tea cup for drinking (not for hat ie)
- 2y: less realistic objects (banana=phone)
- 3y: pretends objects and events with no real world support
Less self-centred:
- Start with self (drink cup)
- 2y: use dolls etc
- 3y: dolls as independent actors
More complex:
- drinks from cup then pours/stirs
- 2/3y: combine schemes with peers
- 3/4y: roles and joint proposals
Which types of solitary play can be worrying?
- aimless wondering
- hovering near others (no joining)
- immature, repetitive functional play
Because of temperament ie shy (need adult to facilitate)
Is imaginary friends a problem?
No in fact it helps imagination
Describe rough and tumble play
starts with parents with peers from around 3y. Distinct from real fight:
- smiling
- will stay together after
- shorter and not watched by others
- not hit hard
children identify same cues
small number turn to real fights:
1% (teachers say 30%!)
25% for rejected children
How does friendship affect play?
12-18m: children prefer some over others (more touch smily positive)
20m: initiate more interactions with ‘friends’
24m: can be identified as friend by teachers etc
Complex skills more common with friends (better to interpret pretend play fx)
How does family affect play?
- mothers initiate pretend play
- Play more sophisticated with mum / older siblings
How does culture affect play?
- Content: ie India bigger groups encouraging harmony
- Beliefs: different values on play activity
What’s the role of pretend play (and according to who)
Smilansky: essential for language
Dansky: helps associative fluency
Golomb: conservative learning
Evidence both for and against its importance
What’s said about how play contributes to cognitive development?
Some claim language and IQ are facilitated, others say research is flawed and that same effect is found with general training
Cognitive abilities are correlated with levels of constructive play NOT Social-pretend (Sylva + Johnson)
What’s said about play’s contribution to social-cognition (theory of mind)?
more sophisticated social-pretend play leads to increase in theory of mind (and earlier)
Does play contribute to social development?
social-pretend associated with popularity and social competence
Does that mean that rejected are excluded? Trained staff needed
