I recognise that all children are different, and that there is no magic wand that you can wave to encourage your child to play in this way. My daughter is an only child, so to a certain extent, she has had to learn how to play by herself. She has also been at home with me full time since birth, so has had ample time to hone her play skills, without the interruption of childcare or school.
Nonetheless, there are certain lessons I’ve learned over the years and strategies that I’ve discovered through reading and research that have enabled and encouraged her to play in this way, and I would love to take the opportunity to share these with you. My aim is to write a four week course, with four overarching themes, and 24 guides to support you in what I consider to be The Fundamentals of Play.
In this course you will learn how to put in place the foundations for independent play through small changes to the prepared environment. You will discover what I consider to be the six most important play materials your child needs to thrive. You will discover how to create key play areas in your home or setting, whatever your space or budget. You will discover the important role that you can play in your child’s play journey. You will come away with inspiration and a sound understanding of how to support your child with The Fundamentals of Play.
This course has come about in response to my social media community who often comment on my daughters ability to play so creatively, independently and for sustained periods of time.
How to enable and encourage creative, independent and sustained play.
Who is this course for?
This course is for parents and childcare professionals who would like to curate a play and learning space that enables and encourages their children to play creatively, independently and for longer stretches of time. This course is open worldwide. All you need is an email address to access the course content.
In order to see a positive and lasting impact, this course will require you to make a commitment of time and thinking space, as well as the completion of some practical tasks. You will find that you make better progress, and get more value from your investment, if you are able to fully engage in the process.
Why should you take the course with me?
I am an Early Years consultant, specialising in play. I’ve worked with children in a play capacity for the past 20+ years, first as an Early Years teacher and now as a childminder and home educator. I speak from first hand experience of how impactful it can be to make small changes to the prepared environment to enable and encourage independent play.
Here are some of the testimonials I received about my other online course, The Simple Art of Toy Rotation.
"I absolutely loved this course! It has helped me to simplify our toys and living spaces. By setting up a toy rotation system, it has not only made my children's play more meaningful, it has also helped calm my anxiety about clutter! Anyone who wants to simplify their life and encourage their children to partake in deeper and more meaningful play should do this course!"
"What a fun, inspiring course! This was just what I needed to get our play space under control. We now have a functional system that inspires creativity and deeper engagement in play. I am so thankful that I was able to participate, I would highly recommend this to anyone wanting to make a positive change!"
"An enjoyable and informative course - highly recommend. I had already begun rotating toys. but this course has really helped me to focus on how to choose what to select and ensuring play space is as minimal as possible, while thinking of how to make this manageable and practical in day to day life. And it is working! My 3yo loves when she finds her toys newly rotated and I am sure that it is a massive factor in her ability to play independently for long chunks of time."
How will the course work?
At the moment, this is a self-paced course, with only two of the twenty-four guides ready for release.
Once the full course has been written, I will update with a full description of how the guided course will work.