What is Play?

Many people hear the term ‘The Circle of Security’, and many people perceive to understand what the Circle of Security really is. However, the key question is.. What does the circle of security look like in practice with young children at Thrive?

Play-based learning is a term you have probably heard around and you have probably wondered what it’s all about and how does play promote learning?

During the act of play children are engaging with many dispositions; imagination, creativity, exploration, resilience, problem solving. Dispositions are essential attitudes to learning, and through this act of play children are enhancing their social, emotional, physical, cognitive and language domains.

The Early Years Learning Framework (2009) define Play as “Play is a context for learning that:

Allows for the expression of personality and uniqueness
Enhances dispositions such as curiosity and creativity
Enables children to make connections between prior experiences and new learning
Assists children to develop relationships and concepts
Stimulates a sense of wellbeing” (p.10)

Additionally, the EYLF also advocates for play-based learning and defines it as ‘a context for learning through which children organise and make sense of their social worlds, as they engage actively with people, objects and representations’.

Implementing Play-Based Learning

When thinking about play-based learning, it requires a level of planning. Using the environment and resources, educators need to ensure they are targeting children’s interests and developmental levels. Through this planning children will engage with the different elements of play, inclusion self-driven, process-driven, and socially driven.

Each of these elements of play are essential to ensuring the play is associated with learning (Best Chance, n.d.).

Benefits Of Using Play For Learning

Play is the highest form of enjoyment. When children are happy, engaged and stimulated, they are more likely to learn and retain what they are learning. Contrary to this would cause a child to be disengaged and therefore unlikely to retain the learning which is occurring around them.

Play-based learning has the potential to support children’s emergency literacy and language skills and their emerging social and emotional skills. Additionally, play-based learning inspires and creates a space where children use and apply creativity, imagination and confidence, all contributing to a positive attitude to learning (DEWWR, 2009).

Research supports the fact that when children have positive educational experience in the early years, they are more likely to continue experiencing positivity in their later schooling (DEWWR, 2009).

What Does A Play-Based Program Look At Thrive

At Thrive we value play-based learning as the foundations to our curriculum approach. Using both indoor and outdoor environments, educators plan, implement and then evaluate the curriculum ensuring it is based on children’s individual interests. At Thrive each educator spends extended periods of time with children and their families, to truly capture the interests of individual children. It is with this information that the curriculum becomes play focused. As previously mentioned, when children are engaged and stimulated, that is when the learning occurs! Therefore, at Thrive, that comes from knowing each of our children and their interests.

Further to the structure of our curriculum are the routines our Thrive centres implement. Routines are important for children, to support certain transitions (mealtimes, rest times) and to ensure the programs are implemented in a predictable cycle. However, aligning with our thrive PHILOSOPHY, we ensure all children have opportunity to long extended periods of uninterrupted blocks of play. Allowing children extended time to play and learning through their play, enhances their retention of information and future memory recall.

Agency and autonomy are two crucial concepts within play-based learning. Children need to be empowered to use both. When a child builds on their agency and becomes autonomous, they are making decisions about their learning based on their own interests and needs. As supported by the EYLF, children should be driving the direction of their own learning. At Thrive we ensure all educators are equipped with the teaching strategies needed to support children in using agency and autonomy.

So next time the child wants to take the sand from the sandpit or the playdough to the home corner to use it for cooking… don’t stop them. Or next time they want to use the collage material in their construction area… don’t stop them. Rather, step back, watch and see what learning is occurring for your child in that moment.

References

Bubikova-Moan, Næss Hjetland, H., & Wollscheid, S. (2019). ECE teachers’ views on play-based learning: a systematic review. European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, 27(6), 776–800.

Best Chance. (n.d.). The Science of Play: The Importance of Play-based Learning. https://www.bestchance.org.au/blog/the-science-of-play-the-importance-of-play-based-learning/

DEWWR. (2009). BELONGING, BEING & BECOMING The Early Years Learning Framework for Australia. https://www.acecqa.gov.au/sites/default/files/2018-02/belonging_being_and_becoming_the_early_years_learning_framework_for_australia.pdf

Sumsion, Grieshaber, S., McArdle, F., & Shield, P. (2014). The “state of play” in Australia : Early childhood educators and play-based learning. Australasian Journal of Early Childhood, 39(3), 4–13.

The Circle of Security

What is the circle of security?

The Circle of Security is a foundational approach to John Bowlby’s attachment theory. Bowlby believes that attachments to other humans are a survival technique, and without those attachments negative impacts occur to children’s long term cognitive, social and emotional development (Beloglovsky & Daly, 2015). This is particularly important for young children as the first 1000 days are essential to brain development (DSS,2019).

The Circle of Security was developed to guide caregivers in supporting children’s emotional development. Children of all ages have attachment needs, so it is essential that we understand children’s attachment needs.

The Circle of Security is based on the underpinning that children must be supported emotionally at all stages of their emotional journeys.

There are 3 main concepts associated with the Circle of Security

Going out on the circle: This is when children go out and explore. They are confident for this time and take many risks. During this time caregivers need to be encouraging and praising.
Coming in on the circle: At times children need to be consoled and need to come back to their caregiver for love and comfort. This time is essentials for caregivers to be welcoming and understanding, supporting children’s emotions rather than dismissing them.
The safe haven: This defines the caregiver. This is the space where the child can be comforted and feel safe and a sense of belonging. During this space where the caregiver is comforting the child and consoling their every emotion, it is filling the child’s ‘emotional cup’. When the cup is full, the child will go out and play again, demonstrating the top of the circle, and when the cup begins to empty the child comes in on the bottom of the circle

(Dolby, 2017).

It is essential caregivers are aware of these stages and the importance of being the safe haven for children.

What does the circle of security look like at Thrive?

When you visit one of our thrive centres you may notice our educators spending extended periods of time sitting with the children. This does not mean our educators are ‘lazy’, but rather it allows children to feel a sense of security and belonging. When adults spend time interacting with children and being available for children at their level it encourages self-esteem and confidence, as children will no longer view the adult as a superior.

You may also hear our educators talking to children frequently about their emotions, consoling them and acknowledging their emotions rather than dismissing them. This too is an important process of the Circle of Security approach. Allowing children to know and understand that what they are feeling is valid and important, supports them in building resilience and ‘filling that emotional cup’ sooner. So, when you see a child feeling sad and you hear our educators acknowledge those feelings, such as “It’s okay to feel sad, its hard missing mummy sometimes” we want you to also understand that this teaching strategy is to support the child.

When children are curious, they ask questions. When children are confident with a sense of belonging, they are curious. Occasionally you may have an interaction with an educator who needs to excuse themselves for a moment to attend to a child who is asking a question. Please do not feel as though our educator is being disrespectful, as attending to children’s needs and their curiosity is important to our Circle of Security approach. Children should not be told to ‘wait’ or ‘hang on’ or ‘come back in a minute’ when they have a question or when an infant is unsettled. In doing so adults cause children to not feel as though they have a safe haven. Although a child may not be unsettled or upset, it does not mean they do not need their emotional cup filled. Therefore, when a child is doing a check in with an adult and particularly one of our educators, we understand the importance of attending to the child to help them feel confident again.

References

Beloglovsky, M & Daly, L. (2015). Early learning theories made visible. Redleaf Press

Department of Social Services. (2019). The First 1000 Days. https://www.dss.gov.au/families-and-children-programs-services-children-protecting-australias-children/the-first-1000-days#:~:text=The%20first%201000%20days%20of,environments%20in%20these%20early%20year

Dolby, R. (2017). The circle of security: roadmap to building supportive relationships. Early Childhood Australia Inc.