The present article displays a research designed to investigate the role of the toy library as a research laboratory focusing on plays and educational processes in Pedagogy courses. It is a theme of relevance, as it is necessary to deepen the conception of the toy library as a scientific space for learning, aiming at the improvement of the…

Christopher Bensch is vice president for collections and chief curator at The Strong National Museum of Play in Rochester, NY. He oversees the acquisition of and care for the world's most comprehensive collection of playthings. He also serves as the primary spokesperson for the National Toy Hall of Fame. Andrew Borman is digital games curator at…

The author explored the literacy practices in tabletop gaming communities. Focusing on the role of spatiality and materiality in nondigital contexts, this study broadens how literacies research engages with sociocultural analysis of primarily analog settings. Building on experiences in playing the role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons, the…

As Colorado prepares to establish quality standards for its Universal Preschool (UPK) program, the state has the opportunity to be a national model for supporting early childhood. The Children's Campaign's vision is that Colorado's universal preschool standards will support the "whole child" so that all Colorado children can have a…

The twofold aim of the present study was to examine the relationship between toddlers' physical and social spontaneity, as well as to investigate the interaction effects of gender, geographical background, and mother's occupational status on preschoolers' playfulness. Participants were 650 preschool children (353 boys, 297 girls), attending…

Teacher education and social education are increasingly challenged to adopt student-centred approaches by focusing on learning spaces and materiality. This study reports on an integrative literature review to determine how space and materiality are approached in the research literature on playful learning in higher education. A thematic analysis…

This paper highlights a current phenomenon reported from preschools placed in multilingual areas in Sweden, namely that some preschoolers with mutually different language backgrounds sometimes use English as lingua franca instead of Swedish during play. The data stems from a study of language environments in Swedish preschools situated in both…

This study examined the effectiveness of child-centered group play therapy (CCGPT) and narrative therapy in reducing separation anxiety disorder (SAD) and boosting social-emotional behaviours in early childhood (2.5-4-year-olds). An 8-week-randomized controlled trial design with three intervention groups, i.e. CCGPT, narrative therapy, and a…

In a dynamic system, time-dependent links "between" affective factors can provide more information than the level of response "within" a single isolated system. In the present study, influenced by the positive psychology movement and the complex dynamic systems theory in the domain of second language acquisition, first, we…

The aim of this Swedish study was to explore and describe physiotherapists and occupational therapists' attitudes and understanding of the place of play in habilitation. This was a qualitative study, using semi-structured interviews exploring ten habilitation professional's experiences and attitude towards play. Interviews were analysed using…

This paper brings together two studies, conducted independently in two different countries, Turkey and Australia, both focusing on supporting early years teachers to research and strengthen their own practice in relation to play-based pedagogies. It reports on the professional learning programmes that were implemented to improve understanding…

Rich play enhances the child's engagement during play, and this improves the potential for learning. This study examines the place of sensory materials focused on visual and tactile stimuli (sensopathic material) during guided play to improve learning in the reception year. Interviews with teachers and observation of the children while playing…

This article illustrates the potential of using children's play and interest in constructive materials like LEGO bricks to support early literacy, particularly in improving the use of descriptive language. The article describes an action plan using storytelling and constructive LEGO play to improve the children's use of descriptive language and…

Learning progressions have become increasingly prevalent in mathematics education as they offer a fine-grain map of possible learning pathways a child may take within a particular domain. However, there is an opportunity to build upon this research in ways that consider learning from multiple perspectives. Many current forms of learning…

In this pilot single-case study, we evaluated the effects of using LEGO® as a tool for students identified with disabilities to improve their expressive writing performance. We applied a simple ABA reversal design to test whether the intervention was effective with four seventh graders. Social validity data were also obtained. Findings indicate…