Social Development

Facilitating development through play

Through play experiences, children can developmany social skills such as:• Learning interaction styles for a variety of

situations• Learning to cooperate• Choose activities• Make decisions• Experience failure and success

Why do you think pretend play is important?

• Pretend play assists children to explore the world of feelings and relationships. Children learn about and come to terms with their world, particularly if they are confused by their experiences or do not understand them.

• Observing children at play will allow you to get a sense of how play affects a child’s self-esteem, independence and sense of achievement. Play enables them to better understand themselves, their fears, joys and frustrations and how they express themselves.

In play, you can see children:• Learning and practising social skills• Taking turns• Sharing• Negotiating• Cooperating• Thinking• Setting rules an guidelines

• A two-year old child won’t have gained the social skills to play effectively with others, so they are using a different type of social play than a four-year-old child who happily plays in a group.

Theorist Mildred Parten defined different typesof social play:

• Solitary play• Parallel Play• Associative Play• Cooperative Play• Play with rules• Unoccupied Play• Onlooker Play

Activity using pages 49-52 of Aspire book- Support the development of children

For the different types of play:• Define the type of play• Explain at what age do children engage in this

play and why.• What resources should be provided for the

type of play?• How should the space be arranged for the

type of play?

Understanding the social play environment

Children’s social play will reflect who they are becoming as aperson, for example, it mirrors their:• Cultural experiences• Temperament• Interests• Communication style• Personality• Abilities• Length of time attending the service• Level of social competence

Play environments should allow for and cater to many different children and lifestyles; forexample, children’s individual needs should beconsidered in terms of their:• Cultural differences• Gender differences• Additional needs

Think, Pair, Share Activity

• How might you consider cultural/ethnic differences? • Gender differences? • Children with additional needs? Provide two examples of each

To do this you should ensure:• There are no stereotypical or inaccurate

materials that project limited ideas of gender roles, e.g…..

• Resources and their content reflect everyday differences and similarities; for example, physically accurate dolls that reflect different races, a variety of cultural celebrations and books and photos that reflect a broad range of people, abilities and lifestyles.

• Interactions between you and the children are appropriate, and model positive actions.

• Something about or from each child is reflected in the environment.

Example:Kristen welcomes each child into the room by moving to their level and saying hello. She always makes a comment that is special to the particular child. Today she:

-Asks Carol about how her new toy car-Tells Susan that there is painting and collage

out today-Welcomes Tammy with a big hug and tells her that

she has really strong arms- Thanks Ashan for reminding her about watering

her pot plants last night as they were really thirsty.

As with physical development, socialdevelopment is also influenced by the aspectsof:• Time• Space• Resources• People• Safety

TimeChildren need time to:• Make choices• Become involved• Change direction• Become involved again• Practise and master skills• Form relationships• Express themselves

SpaceWhen planning, remember that children needthe following:• Opportunities to undertake the type of play appropriate

for their age. For older children opportunities for each social play stage should be offered and to escape the group for quiet time sometimes.

• Choices- the space available should assist children to choose to do something that interests them-sufficient play spaces for two or three different activities.

• Challenges- offer a variety of possibilities and should encourage children to think creatively, solve problems, and make decisions.

ResourcesThe resources that are made available have ahuge bearing on the quality and type of play they engage in.

PeopleCarers need time and space to be able to interact

with playing children, to enhance social play, model appropriate behaviour and to extend play where possible.

Cultural priorities (education, play, language, rituals and religious beliefs) affect the way play is presented, how you communicate and what priority is placed on certain types of play.

SafetyIn terms of social development, there should be

enough equipment to allow children to participate, particularly if they are young and unable to share. Materials should be sturdy and in good repair and placed in positions to allow for maximum use.

Respecting Diversity Note: Watch “Blue eyes/Brown eyes” experiment on

Click View first.

Diversity relates to a variety of characteristics that may be viewed as differences. These differences may relate to:

• Gender• Race and culture• Age• Interests and preferences• Social activity and lifestyle• Communication style• Personality or temperament• Length of time and regularity of attendance at service• Ability• Family

• From as early as two years of age, children begin to notice physical differences in people, particularly relating to gender, skin colour and obvious physical disabilities. This is part of a child’s self-discovery as they ask “Who am I?”

• Children begin to determine who they are from their experiences with others. They find out whether they are male or female; become aware of the colour of their skin, eyes and hair; and find out about their bodies and their physical abilities.

Answer

• How might children work out their gender? • Aware of physical attributes? • Physical abilities?

• As children start forming relationships with others, they develop attitudes about differences.

• Play can assist children to learn to accept and value all people, particularly those who may appear different from themselves. Play can also assist children to learn positive attitudes of acceptance and respect for a range of different people.

• How could you promote positive acceptance of others in a child care setting?

You could support this by:• Creating a play environment that reflects many

different kinds of people and many different ways of living. EG????

• Arranging a play setting that promotes participation of boys and girls, disabled and able-bodied children and children of various cultural backgrounds. EG???

• Involving parents in any issues that centre upon children’s play.

• Challenging any behaviour that alerts you to negative attitudes that may be developing in children.

• Check out http://www.boundlesscanberra.org.au/index.html

• What is Boundless Canberra?• What will Boundless Canberra provide for all

children?• What are some activities/play spaces included

in Boundless Canberra?

• What should you do if a child refuses to play with another child because of their appearance, colour or physical ability?

• You should deal with the situation sensitively and provide support to both children in the form of discussion; identifying similarities and differences is useful, as it allows the child who is being discriminated against to create responses about why they are different. Eg, if a child wears a headdress.

• This allows them to develop confidence and to feel capable of gaining acceptance through this confidence.

• Cultural differences may also affect how children play as they will have varied experiences of family life according to how they have been raised. Also play availability and participation may have been influenced by life experiences- trauma, parents or other adults attitudes towards play.

• How could you encourage the play of children to include/consider cultural differences, including racial backgrounds?

You can encourage the play of children with cultural differences, including racial backgrounds, by:

• Allowing children to use play that depicts their culture, through role-playing, modelling or use of their language

• Being aware of children’s culture and if possible incorporating resources that are relevant to the program

• Including cultural resources as part of the day-to-day environment rather than just being brought out on special days or occasions

• Respecting all cultures that you are exposed to everyday

• Continually educating yourself about aspects of the children’s lives outside the service

• Not stereotyping any child or family• Including all special occasions that some or all

children participate in.

• What could you do to encourage children to accept gender differences through play?

To encourage children to accept gender differences you should:

• Never label children's activities as best suited to boys or girls

• Be aware that boys and girls play differently from each other

• Encourage all genders to participate in all areas of play, in the environment set up.

• Be sensitive to attitudes of families from culturally diverse backgrounds.

What could you do to encourage children with additional needs to play and be social?

To encourage children with additional needs toplay and be social, you should:• Include them in all types of play for all areas of

development• Participate in the play to model ways to include

the child to the other children and encourage interactions

• Provide specific equipment or set-up to ensure success

• Follow any individual programs for that child• Ensure their programs are incorporated into the

overall play to provide an inclusive environment

1. What are some ways you can demonstrate respect for differences?

2. What is one common item that you could add to “home corner” that would demonstrate the inclusion of an:

-Indian family-Chinese family-Muslim family-Aboriginal family3. Choose an activity that is commonly chosen

by boys and identify how you could encourage girls to be involved.

Diversity in Celebrations

• Develop a calendar for a child care centre for June, with significant religious and cultural days to celebrate cultural diversity. Also include local community celebrations.

• Use the following websites:• www.immi.gov.au/living-in-australia/a-diverse-australi

a/calendar-australia• http://www.events.act.gov.au/• What are some of the activities you could do in a child

care setting to celebrate the days you have chosen?