The Development of Play Skills from Birth to 3
Resources from Zero To Three about how play skills develop, as well as toys and activities at different ages.
The Power of Play
Check out this download on "The Power of Play" from Zero To Three.
Apps to help us with play
Learning Through Play At Different Stages
Check out these links for articles from Zero To Three on play at different ages:
Learning through play: birth-12 months
Tips on playing with babies and toddlers
Block Play
Children generally learn to play with blocks in a sequence.
Check out this PDF from the Montana State Library about the stages of block play.
At 17 months, this little girl is stacking and making block towers.
This video highlights all the things that this young child is learning when playing with blocks.
I also loved this quote on block play: "Unlike toys that have limited use or can be play with in only one way, open-ended toys and play-things can be used in diverse ways and with different levels of proficiency. Blocks, for example, can be used to stack, load in a wagon, build a tower, clap to music, or symbolically represent a person, vehicle, animal, or railroad track. Blocks are enjoyed differently at different ages as play behaviors and capabilities change over time. Blocks have an enduring quality essential to play that supports cognitive and language development at all ages. Think about it: Architects and engineers use blocks to create models of their proposed structures. By contrast, a wind-up mechanical or electronic toy is of little value if all one can do with it is watch it "perform," or if its use requires adult assistance" (Puckett & Black et al., 2009, p. 302).
Peekaboo and hide and seek
Peekaboo is a classic game that is not only good fun but is also a great way to teach object permanence and attention skills and to potentially reduce separation anxiety.
Check out some fun examples:
Early on: Mom moves the cloth
Then baby moves the cloth.
Fun with patterns: This grandma is teaching beginning patterns by popping out from one side to the other.
Ask children get more skilled with peekaboo, they can start to play Hide and Seek!
Let's Play With Baby
The classic video from the Gottman Institute about family play. This video changed the way that I think about family play.
Such a good feeling
Enjoy this video about play courtesy of Daniel Tiger or Mr. Rogers.
Play Challenge Day 2 Update
This month is going to be awesome! So far I:
- Sang along to Christmas music in the car with my family
- Danced to the music while on the elliptical and in the shower
- Experimented with frosting and sprinkle colors on Pillsbury sugar cookies
- Made a race car with our nephews out of a big cardboard box, markers, paper plates, muffin liners, tape, and a plastic bottle for the brake.
Looking forward to more of this!!!
The critical link
A great visual definition of play
Play is one of the building blocks of learning.
How play impacts us as adults
Watch this story of how one man was impacted by adding more play into his life. This is the essence of the Play Challenge.
Welcome to the December 2017 Play Challenge
In November 2017, we focused on increasing positive interactions in our relationships and decreasing negatives. For December, we are going to take that one step further and focus on play. The December Play Challenge means that we are going to make time for regular play and to look for different ways to play individually (both adults and children) and as a family. As Stuart Brown said in his TED talk in March 2009, “I would encourage you all to engage—not in the work-play differential where you set aside time to play—but where your life becomes infused minute-by-minute, hour-by-hour with body, object, social, fantasy, transformational kinds of play, and I think you will have a better and more empowered life.” Posts will be added throughout December, so come back frequently to see what's new. Let’s play!
A tool for remembering to increase positives
I found an app called “Lasting.” It is not by the Gottman Institute, but they say it is research tested strategies. I haven’t paid for the app, but by creating an account and doing the assessment it let me use their reminders. So multiple times a day, the app reminds me to check in with my hubby with fondness, affection, gratitude, etc. So far even without paying for the best of the content, this app is having a positive impact on my marriage. Check it out.
The importance of repair
“Even in relationships that are working well and in families that are working well, there’s a lot of mistakes that people make, and people sort of stumble through life together. And one of the most important things that psychologists have discovered about parenting and also about couples’ relationships is that the most important thing is repair, because everybody messes up in relationships. So... communication is not really about being perfect. It’s really about noticing that you’re not perfect—that you’re really messing up and trying to make it better... In very good relationships, people don’t communicate perfectly. They don’t say things the right way. They’re not really always in a good mood. They’re not really always emotionally available. But they can talk about it and they fix it.” (Source: presentation by Dr. John Gottman)
Vulnerability and repair
As I reflect on increasing the 5:1 ratio in my life, I find myself really drawn to Brené Brown's audiobook "The Power of Vulnerability" (on the iBooks store) because it is helping me to deal with the struggle of trying to increase positives and decrease negatives in my relationships while being real that I'm not perfect and I'm not going to do it perfectly.
Gratitude
I use this app to regularly focus on what I am thankful for.
I’m really thankful for each of you that reads my blog and for the opportunity to work toward my dreams of supporting families to know, love, and motivate one another towards joy and connection and health.
