How to inspire creative play in preschool with technology now?
Michael Hilkemeijer
Technology integration in Early Childhood Education & Primary Education membership
In the early years curriculum, learning activities are built upon a foundation of creativity, play and exploration/experimentation.?Creative play is typically given its own area of learning and is about discovering the new or making new connections.?You can observe creative play by noticing how meaningful they are to the child and you can also view the level of engagement the child has with the process, the pleasure they take and their focus of attention.
There are many creative technologies that you can choose from, some that may already have, or are affordable. They represent the digital technology in early childhood education that is concerned with creating something. Each allows a user to make a product and create something digitally so technology is a tool in this situation.
It is important, therefore, to provide digital technology in ways that support your own pedagogy and your understanding of the nature of young children’s developing creativity. Digital play in the early years learning environment can nurture creativity in a meaningful way.
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Creative Play in the Early Years
So what is creative play in early childhood education? It is when you as the educator give young children to opportunity to make mistakes and allow them to express their ideas in forms such as dramatic play, music, dance, storytelling and art. All of which digital technology can greatly assist.
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The benefits of creative play in early childhood include:
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Technology and Play
Digital play in the early years is an important aspect associated with early childhood learners. It does not just refer to random, unstructured engagement but describes creative, experimental and purposeful activity with which educators can mediate to ensure genuine learning occurs.
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Creative technologies fit very nicely into the aims and objectives of the early childhood phase of schooling. All digital technology in early childhood education should be creative and enable learners to create something, and whatever it is that is created should be a “rich learner task that is complex, embedded in the curriculum and offers opportunities for development that are beyond acquisition” (Howell, 2012, p. 90).
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For a long time now, technology researchers have been interested in the idea of combining play with technology. An example of early use of technology in play-based learning in early childhood education would be the “Logo Turtle” that was created by Seymour Papert. It was developed to help children solve mathematical problems.
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Yet, by examining the approach that Mitch Resnick created that explored how technology was suited to the early childhood education approach to learning, you can see the many possibilities that it offers. His approach moved the learners through a cycle of imagining, creating, playing, sharing, reflecting and then back to imagining and digital technology can support this approach to learning if used appropriately and selected wisely.
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For example, Howell (2012) suggested that ‘imagining’ could be supported by seeing a small robot perform on a video; ‘creating’ can be supported by planning how to build a similar robot to what they saw using the available materials and tools; ‘playing’ can be the process of seeing if their design works; ‘sharing’ could simply be achieved by sharing the digital images online by uploading to blogs or emails; and ‘reflecting’ could be just short commentaries or blog postings. As you can see the interpretations are endless.
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Encouraging preschoolers to use digital technology for creativity
A child knows best when they are creative, so it is important that you follow your child’s lead with creative play activities. Promoting creativity in early childhood education with digital technology is also about allowing the children to explore their own creative interests and express themselves. Determine what they want to do before you suggest something.