Integrating Guided Play and Hands-On Learning: Insights and Application
The Power of Play
A Discussion About Joyful Teaching and Deeper Learning
Kathy Hirsh-Pasek and Michelle Kang
Editors’ Note
On a recent episode of NAEYC’ s new podcast Small Talk: Big Ideas About Little Learners, NAEYC CEO Michelle Kang spoke with Dr. Kathy Hirsh-Pasek about the power of play. Dr. Hirsh-Pasek is an author and professor of psychology at Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington, DC. She has written a lot about the power of play, including a chapter in NAEYC’ s book on developmentally appropriate practice. Her newest initiative, called Playful Learning Landscapes, reimagines and redesigns city parks and public spaces to transform them into places of scientific exploration, social interaction, and play.
Following is an excerpt from their conversation. It has been edited for length and clarity.
6 Young Children
Fall 2026