Play: Key to Learning - TeachersAndFamilies

Play: Key to Learning
By Deborah Johnson, PhD, &
Stephen P. Demanchick, MSEd, NCC
The Children’s Institute

 

Summary

Through play, children explore the world around them, imagine alternatives, solve problems individually or with others, learn how to negotiate, learn how to express their feelings, and learn to be creative. From infants to toddlers to school-age children, play is an essential part of learning.

 

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Parenting Start

Deborah Johnson, MS, NCSP, is the Director of Community Services for the Children’s Institute and National Director of the Primary Mental Health Project in Rochester, NY. She does extensive training in adapting play therapy to the school setting and implementing mental health prevention and promotion programs in schools. Stephen P. Demanchick, MSEd, NCC, is a Research Assistant at the Children's Institute and Scholar at the University of Rochester. This article is adapted from their handout which appeared in Helping Children at Home and School II: Handouts for Families and Educators, published in 2004 by the National Association of School Psychologists.
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