Building an Inclusive Toolkit for Observing and Supporting Every Child’s Play
by Cath Evans
Hey PLAY People,
This month, Cath Evans reminds us that there really is no such thing as an ‘average child’. She explores how diversity shows up in every classroom, not only for children with identified additional needs but for all children, as each brings their own unique ways of thinking, exploring and creating.
It’s a thoughtful piece that encourages us to look beyond the averages and really see the individual child in front of us.
Enjoy!
Building an Inclusive Toolkit for Observing and Supporting Every Child’s Play
By Cath Evans
At The PLAYlist, we know that as well as being a right for every child, play is essential for wellbeing and learning. And there is always a balance to be struck between adult’s planning and engaging in children’s play and ensuring that every child really does have autonomy in their child-led play (what many of us know as free play).
When we discuss common play behaviours or the PLAYlist practitioner activities this comes up - we want to ensure that we give you inspiring resources which open-up possibilities for each child to explore in their own ways.
You’ll have noticed that when Alistair talks about common play behaviours, he always adds that this is not a neat linear progression that we move every child through. Common play behaviours help us reflect on the resources that are available, thinking about the skills children are likely to explore and develop in continuous provision. This is not about making sure children only use resources ‘at their level’ - they open up possibilities rather than limit them. And with PEARLS of practice you can really begin to think about how your environment and interactions support children’s wellbeing, learning and development.
We all know there is no such thing as an average child, those who research child development create an average based on studies of a number of children. Just as the average number of children in a family is 1.74[1] - you will not find a family with 1.74 children, you will not find the average child in your room! This means while the common play behaviours will capture a lot of what you notice as you observe children playing, you will also see children who play in ways you did not expect. Some of these children may have developmental differences or be children who have additional support in your setting but when we are talking about diversity we are talking about everyone.
As Alistair has pointed out in the past - play has infinite possibilities, depending on who is playing and the situation they are in.[2] And this article is really about recognising and affirming diverse ways of playing.
What does all this mean for you and your team when you are thinking about how to notice, resource and support every individual child’s play?
Building a play toolkit
In the next part of the article, we will suggest some resources (many you will already know) that you can use alongside common play behaviours to build a toolkit that enables you to understand and support diverse ways of playing.
Step one - consider where and how children experience a positive sense of wellbeing
The starting point for play and learning always has to be wellbeing. If children do not feel safe they cannot engage with play or adult-led activities. Before considering the ways in which children prefer to play we need to explore the spaces, times and activities where they seem to experience positive feelings.
Before looking at these tools speak to families and if appropriate children about how they show this - remember our perceptions of other people’s experiences are not always accurate.
Leuven scales - wellbeing
The Leuven scales devised by Ferre Laevers can be a valuable tool for considering children’s wellbeing and involvement. You can use the wellbeing scale to support your understanding of a child’s wellbeing. When considering an individual child’s wellbeing, observe and consider this over a period of time, rather than basing your judgement on a single observation.
Questions for observations
Where and when does this child demonstrate positive wellbeing?
When we are rarely noticing positive wellbeing: Are they developing positive relationships with the adults in the setting? Do we know what their preferred play activities are at home?
Sensory processing
Reflecting on children’s sensory experiences is an important part of ensuring positive wellbeing. The way in which individuals process and respond to input from each of our eight senses can vary. The eight senses are: Sight, hearing, touch, taste, smell, proprioception (sense of your body), vestibular (balance), and interoception (sensations from inside your body such as hunger or tiredness).
Some children may be over-responsive, which may lead to them avoiding some sensory input. Others may be under-responsive and may need more intense input. And the same person could be over- and under-responsive at different times or in different situations.
When you understand children’s preferences you can think about the spaces and resources you need to provide (or avoid) sensory input to enable them to enjoy their play. This may include providing opportunities for sensory play, for example providing climbing, rocking, bouncing and tactile play, but also includes thinking about children’s sensory experiences when you are reflecting on your learning environment.
Questions for observations
How and where do we notice this child seeking sensory input in their play?
Do we notice this child avoiding any experiences, could this be linked to sensory processing?
Step two - notice children’s fascinations
When we think about supporting children’s play, we need to know which play is important to them. Chatting to families is a really important place to start with this, but you can use other tools to help you notice what is important to them.
When you begin to observe children’s fascinations - take a moment to reflect and ask yourself if some fascinations are accepted and others discouraged in your setting. You may not be aware this happens until you notice children’s passions and stop to think about which are supported through the environment and interactions in your setting.
Leuven scales - involvement
I have included the involvement part of the Leuven scales in the section about fascinations: high levels of involvement are likely to be linked to a deep interest and an appropriate level of challenge. Children can find this in their play as they are able to take risks as they play without the pressure of being right or playing in the ‘right’ way.
Any judgments about individual children’s involvement should be based on your observations over a period of time.
Questions for observations
Where does this child show high levels of engagement?
Do we sometimes stop or limit their play? Take a moment to think and chat with your team about if there are types of play you stop, perhaps because you feel it is not appropriate or safe. If this is where an individual child becomes deeply involved does this need to be stopped? If it does, can you offer a similar play opportunity in a different way?
Schema
Schema are repeated patterns of behaviour which are linked to how children are learning about the world. They may repeatedly explore movement, by moving themselves or resources. This repetition helps them to build their understanding of the world. You can see more about schematic play in Alistair’s staffroom session training.
While not every repeated behaviour is linked to a schema, some children will have a strong interest in one or more schema - and you will be able to support their play by ensuring your provision provides multiple ways to explore these.
Question for observations
Have we seen this behaviour repeated in different ways?
Special interests
Some children will have very strong interests, fascinations or passions - these will thread into many aspects of their play. Special interests may be the starting point for connection with others, as children share facts, repeat favourite phrases or songs or join those engaging with resources connected to their interest.
Question for observation
What is this child fascinated by?
Step three - reflect on individual social preferences
We know that children have different social preferences and ways of communicating. Dr Damien Milton’s theory of the ‘double empathy problem’[4], demonstrates the importance of understanding differences in ways of interacting. He argued that both autistic and non-autistic (allistic) people had difficulty understanding each other’s feelings and intentions. Which means rather than only teaching autistic people how to understand allistic individuals we need to support recognition and understanding of different ways of being.
Mildred Parten’s stages of social play
In 1932 American researcher and sociologist Mildred Parten [5] wrote about stages of social play, these will be familiar to many of us. Mildred’s Parten’s stages of social play are:
Unoccupied play
Babies observe the world and move their bodies.
Solitary play
Babies and toddlers play alone; they will focus on the activity that they are doing.
Onlooker play
Children watch what others are doing, but don’t join in yet; they show that they are interested in others and might talk to them.
Parallel play
Children play close to other children, and might use some of the same toys, or they might watch and copy what another child does. However, each child has their own ideas and goals that they are pursuing as they play.
Associative play
Children are engaged with each other; they share toys but still might be doing their own thing and following their own ideas.
Cooperative play
Children organise their play and agree what they will do; they share a goal and take turns.
You may think they do not fit in this article, as they are presented as a linear progression. However, if you think of these not as a hierarchy of skills to work through, but as a number of ways of being with other people they are helpful. Everyone, including those who have mastered all the skills needed to cooperate, will find there are times and situations when they prefer to observe or be alongside others. Use these to help you to think about individual preferences for playing with others - and then reflect on if your environment provides children with the space and opportunity to be with others (or not) in their preferred way.
Question for observation:
What is this child’s preferred way to play?
Is this generally the same or does it vary?
Reflection points
Your play toolkit will have given you information about play preferences - having thought about this it is important to reflect on what this means for your provision.
What play do you stop?
How could you continue to support this play (for example, by offering the experience a child is seeking in a different way)?
Are there some interests that you do not allow children to explore? Why? Could you give them time to explore these?
Do you provide opportunities for different ways of being together - and support all children to understand each other’s preference?
Are there spaces for children who want to play alone?
Are there spaces where children can be near to others and watch them play?
Do you support and model diverse ways of communicating - including using visuals, sign-supported speech, sounds, gestures and other non-verbal communication?
How could you support children who find choosing what they want to engage with difficult?
What resources do we need to provide to ensure this child can explore and engage during free-play?
In this article, we have not focused on any one neurotype, we wanted to give some ideas of tools you can use to notice individual play behaviours which may differ from the common play behaviours you have identified. Before finishing we wanted to acknowledge some of the incredible resources available to help practitioners think about autistic play. The work of our PLAYlist guests is a good place to start. For example, the Diverse Pathways of Development resources which have been developed by Kerry Murphy and the Neurodiversity Affirming Early Childhood Collective (a group of parent x carers, specialists and professionals).[5]
References
[1] Office for National Statistics (12 July 2024). Average number of dependent children per family, England and Wales, 2019, 2022 and 2023. Available from: Average number of dependent children per family, England and Wales, 2019, 2022 and 2023 - Office for National Statistics
[2] Alistair Bryce-Clegg (no date). Why play is essential to early development. Teach Early Years. Available from: Why play is essential to early childhood development | Learning and Development | Teach Early Years
[3] Milton, D. E. M. (2012). On the ontological status of autism: the ‘double empathy problem.’ Disability & Society, 27(6), 883–887.
[4] Parten M. B. (1932). Social participation among preschool children. The Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 27(3), 243–269. 10.1037/h0074524
[5]Neurodiversity Affirming Early Childhood Collective (no date). Diverse Pathways for Early Development. Available from: Diverse Pathways
Cath Evans
Hi, I’m Cath Evans, an early years practitioner in a local authority Special Educational Needs Advisory Service. I’m mum to two grown-up children and one very small dog. I qualified as a teacher almost 30 years ago and gained Early Years Professional Status (now Early Years Teacher Status) in 2007.
During my BEd, I became interested in young children’s learning and development, asked for a placement in a nursery class and never looked back! I have worked across the EYFS in a number of different roles and settings. Including as Deputy Manager and SENCO in a packaway playgroup, a Children’s Centre Teacher, and a Deputy Headteacher and SENCO at Lark Hill Nursery School in Stockport, a wonderful maintained nursery school.
I think working with babies and young children is a fascinating and incredibly important job - it really does lay the foundations for everything that follows. I love thinking creatively about how our interactions and the spaces we create can support every child’s wellbeing, learning and development.
Fun Facts - I have three degrees (so far!) and have just started a PhD in Education Research. I am a Signalong tutor and I enjoy doing a Parkrun with my family - although they are all faster than me so I only see them at the beginning and end! .
