Open Discussion Forum

In our 2011 book The Play's the Thing: Teachers' Roles in Children's Play (Teachers College Press), Elizabeth Jones and I suggest that effective assessment of children's skills and learning begins with observation. As children engage in open-ended, freely chosen, self-directed dramatic and imaginary play a teacher who is near enough to hear and see children's interactions with each other and with materials can take jot notes of the events and of a child's skills spontaneously expressed during the play. From her/his jot notes the teacher can then pull out and reflect on observed skills, and name them to align with any statement of standards and/or learning goals. Identifying skills that occur spontaneously during play is authentic assessment, because the skill is not prompted by someone who "knows" the answers.

Vygotsky writes that self directed play is a natural scaffold for children's learning, because they control (have agency) inside the context of the play. When teachers plan for skills to be learned "during" play, the downside is that teachers typically also control the play. "Let's play restaurant today, because when we get the kids to make a pizza menu we can get them to practice formation of letters and spelling phonetically." In "The Play's the Thing" we suggest that self-directed "play" is not play for children; no matter what we call it it is a lesson, because the teacher owns the agenda. Parents may be told that children are learning "through play" but they are not... when teachers have all the power. 

What children learn during play often surprises adults: unpredicted learning is wonderful and joyful! Start with recorded observations to keep notes of all the clever things children do and know. A "clever" adult can transcribe what she sees into the language of standards and goals. With recorded observations a team of teachers has the documentation to support the skills they have identified to discuss at team meetings and parent interviews.

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Gretchen Reynolds
Ottawa, Ontario
Canada
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Oh my goodness!! I read your book for a class through UCLA extension and it CHANGED MY LIFE!  I refer to it often when speaking to the parents of my preschoolers (I own an in-home preschool) and it helps them to understand the value of "play."  What an honor it is to read your paragraph above and I am excited to read your other books now, too!!

Signed, 

A Huge Fan
(aka, Cynthia) :)

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Cynthia Greenspan
Owner/Director
TTwinfinity (in-home) Preschool
Anaheim Hills, CA
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Original Message:
Sent: 08-17-2018 02:10 PM
From: Gretchen Reynolds
Subject: Assessment of skills in play

In our 2011 book The Play's the Thing: Teachers' Roles in Children's Play (Teachers College Press), Elizabeth Jones and I suggest that effective assessment of children's skills and learning begins with observation. As children engage in open-ended, freely chosen, self-directed dramatic and imaginary play a teacher who is near enough to hear and see children's interactions with each other and with materials can take jot notes of the events and of a child's skills spontaneously expressed during the play. From her/his jot notes the teacher can then pull out and reflect on observed skills, and name them to align with any statement of standards and/or learning goals. Identifying skills that occur spontaneously during play is authentic assessment, because the skill is not prompted by someone who "knows" the answers.

Vygotsky writes that self directed play is a natural scaffold for children's learning, because they control (have agency) inside the context of the play. When teachers plan for skills to be learned "during" play, the downside is that teachers typically also control the play. "Let's play restaurant today, because when we get the kids to make a pizza menu we can get them to practice formation of letters and spelling phonetically." In "The Play's the Thing" we suggest that self-directed "play" is not play for children; no matter what we call it it is a lesson, because the teacher owns the agenda. Parents may be told that children are learning "through play" but they are not... when teachers have all the power.

What children learn during play often surprises adults: unpredicted learning is wonderful and joyful! Start with recorded observations to keep notes of all the clever things children do and know. A "clever" adult can transcribe what she sees into the language of standards and goals. With recorded observations a team of teachers has the documentation to support the skills they have identified to discuss at team meetings and parent interviews.

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Gretchen Reynolds
Ottawa, Ontario
Canada
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