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ALL
ABOUT
P.L.A.Y.
W
hile the focus of early childhood education is
understandably on ABC’s and 123’s, there is another aspect
of childhood development that often gets overlooked,
and that’s P.L.A.Y.
“Play fosters independence, creativity and the forward thinking
ideals that we want to ensure we’re building and providing growth
in,” said Jennifer Osterman, of Little House Learning Center. “Play is
vitally important in every child’s development. Learning for begins
during play. At Little House, play is infused with multiple academic
goals each and every day during activity time, structured play and
free play. The value and importance of PLAY cannot be overstated.
At Little House Learning Center we see that value and focus on the
cornerstones of PLAY everyday!”
POSSIBILITIES – Play offers possibilities. “We strive to provide
endless possibilities in the minds of the kiddos, to learn to believe in
themselves and discover what those possibilities can be. Anyone can
be a firefighter, doctor, stylist - anything they choose through play.
They engage in the real world through play experience, modelling
and building on conversations and opportunities they have been
a part of through play. By flying to the moon in a cardboard box,
or using a toilet paper roll to see the stars, we teach children their
dreams have no limits! These possibilities are found and fostered in
play.”
LEARNING – Play provides endless learning opportunities. “The
most important way for children to learn is
through play and the learning is not limited
to letters, shapes and numbers. Learning is
also about how to be a good friend, how to
share, talk politely, and wait patiently. During
outdoor play, kiddos learn about the world
around them. Exploring the mud, sifting the
sand, balancing on the stepping stones and
building habitats for an ant colony; children
build body awareness and connections
with their surroundings. At Little House the
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teachers strive to include the essential building blocks of academic
learning into these daily experiences in play”
ATTITUDE – Play develops attitude. “Attitude is developed during
social and independent play. How children feel about themselves,
their learning environment, friendships and the world around them
can be fostered, encouraged and developed during play. Providing
children with a wide range of experiences, challenges, successes and
yes…even failures will help build their character and in turn, affect
their attitude. A child’s confidence will be built through the struggle
of finally building a tower that continued to fall. Their independence
will be increased with each successful doll they can dress themselves
or train track they can finally build. Meeting small challenges during
play, independent or cooperative, provides character building
opportunities. Our children’s attitude toward themselves and their
world begins and develops in play.”
YOU – Play needs YOU! “‘You’ is often the piece of the ‘play puzzle’
that’s forgotten. ‘You’ is the parent, the classroom teacher, the
caregiver, the involved grandparents, or the school bus driver! The
‘you’ in play is a whole group of people that are a part of this child’s
world. We all need to drive home the importance of play, provide
context for their imaginations, give opportunities to dream and
play those dreams out. When we challenge children and encourage
them to foster those dreams and build on their learning, we continue
to foster the confidence they feel and the attitude they have of
themselves and others. Every ‘you’ is super
important and vital to develop our children into
fantastic, productive, wonderful, independent,
and kind human beings.”
n For more information on Little House Learning
Center, go to littlehouselearningcenter.
com online, or call Jennifer Osterman at
724.776.5583. Little House Learning Center
is located at 7021 Crider Road, Suite #206 in
Mars, 16046 - right off of Route 228, next to the
Springfield Grill. We hope you choose to join our
LH Family!