The power of play

By Third Grade Lead Teacher Caroline Dwight and Pre-K Associate Teacher Kim Martin

To fulfi ll Trinity School’s mission, we strive to provide deep and joyful educational experiences, ensure those experiences are developmentally appropriate, and connect those experiences to what is important in the life of a child. This core foundation for learning attracted us as teachers to Trinity and is what keeps us searching for more playful and meaningful activities. Through grade-level events and schoolwide activities, our students gain an understanding of their place in our community and their place in the world, all while playing! Play is one of the most crucial elements of human development. Playful, continuous interaction with the world allows children to develop voices to speak, legs to skip, and minds to think. When we notice students digging in the sandbox, pretending to be math teachers, and alternating hand beats on a drum, we can’t help but think of the neural pathways being brought to life through these meaningful play experiences. Educational play empowers students in their learning and deepens their educational experiences, core pillars that support Trinity’s mission of each child reaching his or her unique potential as a responsible, productive, and compassionate member of our school and the greater community. Play is how our students connect to their peers, their classrooms, their school, and their world. Early Learner pirates declare, “Ahoy, matey!” Pre-K Olympians dart across fi nish lines. Kindergartners travel around the world, and First Graders bring animals to life. Each of these precious, joyful events fosters a sense of community and belonging while strengthening spatial awareness, scientifi c investigations, making friends, reading, and writing. Our young learners spend as much time as possible exploring in Trinity’s Discovery Woods. Playing in nature is integral for all Trinity students and allows them to connect to the world around them in structured and unstructured ways. From observing what the changing seasons bring to splashing through the creek, their outdoor play experiences grow their confi dence and creativity. Early Learners Lead Teacher Pam Lauer says, “Play in nature is more about observations and having the time to make discoveries. It is hands-on learning and experiments to test ideas and predictions.”

Third Grader English uses a number line on her whiteboard to better visualize the fraction she rolls on the dice during Fraction Golf.

In Pre-K and Kindergarten, students “travel” long distances and become immersed in new locations and cultures. They “visit” Chinese restaurants, design luggage for imagined airplane rides, and use World Languages throughout their day. On the 101st Day of School, First Grade students and teachers dress as Dalmatians and imitate playful dogs, count spots on their costumes, construct towers using 101 cups, and dance their way to this three-digit number. They engage in activities that inspire them to gleam at the satisfaction of reaching this major milestone; it’s kind of a big deal! Students can revisit and reflect on goals they set for themselves and the connections they have made within the classroom. During each of these events, play is the central idea.

We often contrast play with work and categorize it as an activity that is unimportant and lacking any purpose, something that kids will essentially outgrow. Research continues to prove that play is rich in all its varieties and without it none of the achievements of learning languages, technology, or culture would be possible. While Trinity’s approach to play may look different across grade levels, the focus remains the same: fun and games help students thrive socially, emotionally, and physically. Imagine we are in the middle of our Third-Grade fraction unit. During the mini-lesson, students are primed with key vocabulary, skills, and background knowledge to compare fractions. Afterward, students pair up to play a game called War in which they are picking cards from a deck, creating fractions, comparing them, and garnering points if their fraction is greater than their partner’s. If you were to visit our classroom during this time, you would see students spread out around the classroom, heads stooped over their cards. The energy of the room might be bustling and even noisy, but there is a great deal of learning occurring in these giddy moments of controlled chaos. In any given game, students are often engaging organically in conversations as they share observations, solve problems, and make enthused discoveries, all while uncovering the joy of mathematics. When new or unfamiliar concepts are being introduced, games and open exploration can also provide a way to gradually release students into independent practice with the “safety net” of one another for support as needed. Furthermore, games usually involve multiple modalities of learning: kinesthetic, auditory, and visual. Slapping the cards that create a greater fraction can give students that thrilling and necessary release of energy, while whiteboards and markers are handy for students who benefit from making fractions on a number line to visualize the difference.

“We need to dispel the myth that learning mathematics is only possible through rigorous practice and memorization,” says UED Math Specialist Kerry Coote. “Students engage in play for most of their day, whether it is working through a puzzle or game, dramatic play in the classroom, or physical activity on the playground. In much the same way, we should also seek similar opportunities to introduce mathematics creatively. This approach will not only build a sound foundation for complex math skills, but also give students more agency in their learning and more success with problem solving.”

Third Graders Bryson and Caroline are playing Fraction Golf, a game in which they roll the dice to see who can create fractions closest to 0, ½, and the whole number 1.

Pre-K students parade around in their teacher-made dragon and celebrate the Chinese New Year as they complete their study of new cultures and World Languages.

One of our many overarching hopes as teachers is this: that students will go home each day and excitedly tell stories to their parents of playing and exploring and these narratives will be interwoven with evidence of learning. It takes intentional, creative planning as a teacher to design (and sometimes disguise) opportunities that successfully merge playing and learning. These are the reasons why Trinity Teachers treasure the power of play in the classroom. But what about the learners? I’m sure it comes as no surprise that when children are playing and exploring, engagement is heightened because it is simply more fun. For so many students, the social component of play is the buy-in. This interaction strengthens our student’s skills of collaboration, communication, creativity, and critical thinking, the four Cs often hailed as 21st century learning skills. Students who are generally too shy to raise their hand in front of the whole class become deeply rooted in conversations with their partners, constructively debating why 1⁄4 is greater than 1⁄8. At the same time, the outgoing student who just needs to chat joyfully revels in that time of connection. While play can be a valuable conduit for content-based learning, it is also important to note that unstructured free play such as recess reaps a lot of similar fruit. Students get to put social skills into practice, and it is the perfect opportunity for them to stretch muscles of flexibility, collaboration, and problem solving. Sixth Grade Lead Teacher Kristi Story observes these many benefits firsthand. “Trinity’s Sixth Graders have the unique experience of having recess, unlike many of their peers in other independent schools,” she says. “The students use this time to play games, walk the track, swing on the swings, and especially talk with friends. Recess provides them time to refine their social skills and deepen interpersonal relationships. This break in the day allows students to have fun without any agenda or rigid structure. They come back to class focused and willing to learn.” We are thankful that our mission at Trinity acknowledges the merits of both intentional and unstructured play. Every day, our students are engaging in both types of play, and the academic and social-emotional growth of our students is the evidence.

Whether teaching five- or nine-year-olds, we have found that creating intentional opportunities for play in our classrooms leads to academic and social success or growth. Instead of asking, “What did you learn today?” we suggest you lead in with the question, “What did you play today?” We think you will be surprised by the conversation this question will bring.