Affording Children Access to Play

1
Affording Children Access to Play

• Through Assistive Technology

2
Lets Play! Projects University at
BuffaloCenter for Assistive TechnologyWebsite
http//letsplay.buffalo.edu

• Susan Mistrett
• mistrett_at_buffalo.edu

3
Lets Play! Projects

• US Dept of Education funding since 1995
• Focus on play needs of families with children
  with disabilities
• Provide research education to parents,
  caregivers and professionals who work with these
  families
• Collaborate with play organizations toy
  manufacturers to design toys with Universal
  Design features

4
All About Play today

• Impact of play on development
• Role of play in special needs programs
• Designing play spaces toys for ALL children
• Assistive technology supports what to look for
• Selecting and adapting toys
• Extending play opportunities

5
Lets Play! Projects

• US Dept of Education funding since 1995
• Projects focus on play needs of families with
  children with disabilities
• Projects provide research education to parents,
  caregivers and professionals who work with these
  families
• Collaborate with toy manufacturers/ vendors to
  utilize universal design features

6
What is Play?

• Its like a slinky
• It morphs and constantly changes
• There is no right way to do it
• It becomes, evolves, builds on experiences
• Defines and is defined by self
• Life-long

7
When Children Play, They.....

• are intrinsically motivated
• are active
• make play up as they go along
• start and stop when they want to
• they have fun!!!!!!!!

8
When Children Work, They May Not..

• be intrinsically motivated
• be active
• be making it up as they go along
• start and stop when they want to
• have fun!!!!!!!!

Play is the work of children
9
Why Focus on Play?
10
Play Influences Development

• Physical
• Social
• Emotional

• Language
• Cognition
• Imagination

11
Play is what kids do..

• Children learn through play - the primary
  activity for healthy development of young
  children.
• All the skills children need originate from play
  literacy, creativity, self-esteem, mathematical
  reasoning social skills.

12
When I am building sorting

• I learn about height, length, depth and weight
• I learn to cooperate, share, plan and negotiate

• I experience symmetry, balance and patterns
• I gain feelings of competence
• I use my imagination and creativity

13
When I Look at Books
14

• I make friends with books identify favorites
  familiar stories
• I learn that printed books have meaning
• I learn about other people and places
• I develop important reading and listening skills
  with an adult

15
When I Play Pretend...

• I practice what I see and hear learn to
  understand and master adult roles
• I practice math, social language skills
• I am organizing and using ideas
• I symbolically use materials in meaningful ways

16
How do we know.. theorists

• Jean Piaget- describes learning that happens
  during play
• Play, Dreams and Imitation in Childhood (1962)
• L.S. Vygotsky- children develop cognitive
  abilities through social play
• Mind in Society (1978)

17
Play Benefits What Research Says

• Cognitive potential/ability is reflected through
  play
• Using imagination in pretend play leads to
  improved school readiness
• Connections exist between play and emergent
  literacy language

18

• Play provides opportunities to negotiate
• Good players become good problem-solvers
• The more a child is spoken to, sung to, read to,
  danced with, exercised, played with, encouraged
  to explore in a safe environment - the more the
  brain and body will develop.

19
Play Brain Development

• Brain development before the age of one year is
  more rapid and extensive than previously realised
  - the brain nearly triples in size within the
  first year of life.
• Play appears to improve brain development
• Activity increases brain engagement
• Reinforces neural connections
• Decreases stress and reduces levels of cortisol
• Brain development is vulnerable to environmental
  influences (nutrition quality of interaction,
  care and stimulation).

20
But anti-play influences abound

• Working parents have less time and energy to
  devote to fostering a playful childhood for their
  children. (i.e. clean clothes!)
• Barriers to play include over-scheduling an
  over-emphasis on early academic achievement
• Schools increasingly eliminate the "playful" part
  school curtailing recess, gym, sports, and arts.
  
• Playing for Keeps 6/2003

21

• With parental safety concerns, unsupervised
  outdoor play is restricted -especially for young
  children.
• Not all kids have playgrounds in their
  neighborhoods or homes with usable toys.
• Programs for children with disabilities
  under-value the importance of play
• Cultural, socioeconomic and disability issues
  threaten to create yet another generation of
  adults who don't know how to play together.

Playing for Keeps 6/2003
22
Lets Look at Play!
How to promote successful play opportunities for
ALL children
23
Is Play Important?

• When a child cannot play, we should be as
  troubled as when he refuses to eat or sleep
  (Hartley Goldenson, 1963)
• Play is so integral to childhood that a child
  who does not have opportunities to play is cut
  off from a major portion of childhood.
  (Musselwhite,1986)

24
Is Play the Same for All Kids?
25
Play of Young Children with Disabilities

• Use little language
• Engage in less group play play alone more often
• Often have low social status are perceived as
  less appealing play partners
• (Linder, 1994)

• Play is less sophisticated,
• less organized
• Use toys in more functional and ritualistic ways
• less pretending

26
Kids with disabilities may not experience the
same gains from play if their play is limited.
27
How Do Play and Therapy or Education Fit Together?
PLAY
Therapy or Education
28
Uses of Play

• As a therapeutic/ educational modality
• Toys are used to distract or motivate

29
Uses of Play

• 2. To improve play skills
• Toys are selected to develop specific abilities
• Emphasis is on the right way to play

30
Uses of Play

• 3. To promote Playfulness(A. Bundy)
• Play characteristics such as engagement,
  exuberance,persistence, use of
  mischief,pretense, initiating, sharing, giving
  and responding to cues
• Emphasis on promoting fantasy play

31
Balancing Intervention Play

• MAKE SURE there room for both in the day and life
  of the child and his/her family!

32
A Mismatch???

• Play in the lives of typically developing
  children...
• critical to development
• effects all growth domains
• valued as the occupation of childhood

• Play in the lives of children with
  disabilities...
• used as a therapeutic/ educational modality
• seen to develop specific skills
• rarely seen as an IFSP outcome

33
What Does This Mean?

• Kids with disabilities need opportunities
  to play for the sake of play.

34
Looking at Play

• VIDEO
• Allison and Dominic at 3 years old

35
Is Play Happening?

• Intrinsically motivated?
• Active?
• Make play up as s/he goes along?
• Start and stop when s/he wants to?
• Having fun?

36
What Weve Observed About Play Kids with
Disabilities

• Kids perform optimally when they are playing
• Unforeseen outcomes often emerge

• A tendency towards learned helplessness is
  diminished
• Supports should be considered at typical ages
  dont wait!

37

• The intervention of an adult as an initiator,
  modeler, participant enhancer of play
  repertoires may be understated
• Encouraging early access to play empowers
  families to see the child inside

• Adaptations to play materials and play strategies
  are necessary
• Inclusive play opportunities benefit kids
  adults!

38
What Can Providers Do?

• Validate the importance of play
• Discuss development during play
• Give families permission to play
• Recognize share positive play supports and
  outcomes
• Incorporate play into your services suggest
  ways to extend play
• Encourage more child and family play

39
http//letsplay.buffalo.edu
40
FREE Lets Play! Products

• How We Play!
• Playing with Switches
• Computer Play with Young Children with
  Disabilities
• Creating Play Environments
• Let's Play Sheets

• A Guidebook for Developing and Maintaining a
  Play Assistive Technology Lending Library
• Collection of Articles