Just playing? On this afternoon Caden and I went outside to play in the snow and build a snowman! Sorry about the so-so quality of my photos, I snapped them with my iPhone as we were “just playing”.
We may be “just playing” but…
What do you see?
What is the child doing here?
What learning is taking place?
What skills are being practiced/developed?
This post is part of the ”Just Playing?” Blog Hop!
Thank you for remembering that young children do not “just play.” Young children play. They develop through play. They learn through play. They experiment through play. They grow through play. A child’s work is play. Play is important!
Please take a moment to reflect upon the photos and questions above. I would love for you to share your observations in a comment. I’d also like to invite you to “hop” on over to all the other bloggers who are sharing photos of children learning through play this week.
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or please contact Amy from Child Central Station for more information.
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He looks like he’s having all kinds of fun! I love this “Just Playing?” blog hop idea. Because it’s never really “just play” is it? 🙂
I see a little one smiling and laughing and climbing and building and rolling in snow! Using all of his five senses to enjoy the experience (including taste!) and from this experience, he is developing his knowledge of the properties of snow (how can snow be formed into a ball?) and developing those critical large motor skills as he rolls, pushes, builds, balances, and climbs. He is gaining a sense of appreciation for the outdoors and learning how to dress for the cold and explore the cold weather. So many wonderful learning opportunities can come just from spending a little time in outdoor play!
Thanks so much for your insight Deborah! You thought of things I didn’t which is why I just love this blog hop!
Samantha
It is hard not to just smile seeing Caden atop the snow ball then laugh after he falls over.
The quality – and beauty – of the play I see here is that while perhaps “making a snowman” was the general framework for play, Caden had time and space to roll over the snow ball, to climb or hug the developing snowman, and to have a taste of the snow. For Caden, he was able to explore and develop his relationship with, and understanding of, snow in the most developmentally appropriate way: hands-and-body-on!
Thank you for your insight Jeanne! And I’m glad you were able to get that he fell off the big snowball from the pictures. I wasn’t sure that would be apparent.
What a great post! It looks like he is experiencing great joy! This is such important large motor work—I’ll bet he had to get his entire body into the act. I’ll bet he had such a sense of accomplishment when the snowman was finished!
Thank you! Caden just has to get his whole body into everything that he does!
Love the pure joy he is experiencing in playing with the snow and together with mom, such good memories! Gross motor skills at work, imagination at work too!
I love this post. I love how it makes you smile just looking at these pictures, but then when you ask the question.. it makes you look at the picture further and study it. The preschool teacher in me sees him exploring size, space, and proportions. He is gaining a sense of the world around him to make better estimates, predictions, and problem solve in the future.
I love this post. Thank you!
Great insight! Thanks Dayna!
I love the pure joy of outdoor natural play! The first thing I thought of when I saw your photo stream was that Caden is developing perseverance. Having first hand experience of building a snowman, I know that it is no easy task. Working on not only his large muscle skills, but also the fine motor skills as he sculpts the snowballs. Being that the snowballs are of different sizes and stacked in order of size, he was also working on comparing and basic mathematical skills. I love his expressions and how he tests his structure building with his whole body! Thanks for linking up this week!
Thanks for hosting this link up Amy! And thanks for your great observations!
This is such a fab post. And just playing? Is an amazing idea for a linky, of course there is nothing ‘just’ about playing! The first thing’s I thought when looking at your pictures were impressive balance and co-ordination with the snowballs. Also obviously learning about temperature! shapes, sizes and proportions, elements and there must be some planning/problem solving in there somewhere!
Looks like they are having so much fun there they have even forgotten to feel the cold!
There is no snow where we live and my kids have only seen snow twice. Once we tried making a snowman, but the snow wasn’t sticking together very well… yours looks a lot bigger.
Love the photos, sadly we’ve had no snow at all this year so I am jealous. Thanks so much for linking up to the OPP xx
What a lovely idea for a link up. Play is so so important and your photos show so much learning going on. Thanks so much for joining in with the Outdoor Play Party 🙂
This looks like a lot of fun. We love to play in the snow at my house!
Aww! Looks like a fun time!