Guides: Education Support and Childcare: Creativity and Play

eBooks

Bringing STEM to Life : Understanding and Recognising Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths in Play This is a book dedicated to STEM, but you will not find a ‘how to’ for setting up science, technology, engineering or math activities. What you will find is a deeper understanding of the complexities of children’s play. The authors use real examples to demonstrate how, in an engaging environment with meaningful interactions, quality resources and a commitment to play, children will naturally explore STEM concepts.
Publication Date: 2017
Dream, Design, Develop Through case studies, photographs, research and personal stories in this inspiring book, educators will be supported to dream, design and develop an outdoor environment that is responsive to needs and inspires a sense of wonder.
Publication Date: 2019
Mathematics Through Play in the Early Years Teaching mathematics to young children in creative ways is made easy with this Second Edition of a wonderful book, which offers the reader clear advice and lots of exciting ideas to use in any early years setting.By showing how to introduce mathematical concepts through play-based activities, Mathematics Through Play in the Early Years is in tune with current thinking about best practice in teaching, and with the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage and current Numeracy strategy.
Publication Date: 2010
The Big Book of Glues, Brews, and Goos Here's a book to help students create cross-disciplinary projects by using materials they make themselves. From clays and dough, to compounds and crystals, to healthy treats and snacks, children can access the formulas and recipes to make them all! This updated resource combines everything from the former two volumes into one comprehensive edition and features even more recipes, additional relevant content, and expanded connections between activities and curriculum.
Publication Date: 2015

Online Journals / Articles

Australasian Journal of Early Childhood The Australasian Journal of Early Childhood (AJEC) is a peer-reviewed journal publishing in all aspects of research in the early years (birth to eight years). Submissions to this journal will create and disseminate new knowledge that encourages the critical exchange of ideas amongst an international community of scholars.
Baby & Toddler - Imprints: It's Time to Play Nancy has spent 30 years researching and teaching in the field of early childhood education. She's also the mother of Hollywood actor Matt Damon, so she knows a thing or two about how to raise happy, creative and successful children. The key, she says, is giving them lots of opportunities to play. "A lot of people think of play as a frivolous thing," she explains, "but for small children, play and learning are the same thing."
Children Australia Children Australia links policy, research and practice issues on matters associated with children, young people and family wellbeing.
Early Childhood Australia's Statement on Play This Statement considers play and young children aged from birth to eight years. The right to play, however, extends to every child of any age, ability or background and is relevant in schools and other learning environments, services, and communities in which children participate.
Including Babies and Toddlers : A New Model of Participation Models relating to the participation of children are often explicitly aimed at facilitating or evaluating participation in decision-making processes on local levels. However, these models often build on hierarchically ordered 'ladders' of children's involvement starting with passive involvement and increasing gradually to highly active engagement. Such models become problematic when designing or evaluating participative activities for young children.

Online Videos

Babies Outdoors: Play, Development, and Learning The outdoors is as valuable for babies as it is for older children and this program shows how the close adult can bring the outside world alive for them. Babies are sensory motor learners and the outdoors stimulates all their senses. Made in collaboration with Jan White, the program examines development of vision, hearing, and touch, as well as motor development as the babies learn to reach, grasp, sit, crawl, and in some cases walk. It explains how these activities aid brain development and highlights how attachments develop, showing interactions with parents and key people in the nursery as they remain close for all important communication.
Learning Through Play, A Documentary -- 3 to 4 Year Old Observation, assessment and planning – are skills which can be honed and perfected with practice. Filmed sequences give you the luxury of being able to watch children at play over and over, encouraging careful thinking about what you’re watching. Filmed over a year, this observation study follows a 3-year-old boy busy playing in a variety of settings. Within each sequence you will be able to observe how Seb’s playful activity involves many aspects of the characteristics of effective learning. You will have the opportunity to focus on the various aspects of learning that are taking place for Seb within each of his activities. You will also be able to observe and chart the noticeable changes and leaps in Seb’s development. Increased understanding of how a child’s actions, behaviours and developmental needs change over time, ensures practitioners are able to fully support children’s play with a confidence in their own rationale and how this informs their planning.
Play and Learning at School: 5 Year Olds By carefully observing a class of five year old school children, it becomes clear that they are capable of fantastic self-directed play that superbly supports their development. This program illustrates purposeful play in abundance and looks at the individual children and what really motivates them to learn. It teaches adults how to provide the best kind of support and stimulus for the children, including the environment, adult involvement, and peer groups and foster motivation to persist.

Books and DVD's in the Library

AED1240 : drama arts in early childhood education
Publication Date: 2017
Learning Through Play Learning through Play introduces students to the theory of play in the early years while seamlessly integrating curriculum, current trends and Australian government policy. It aims to create a shared understanding of play and play-based pedagogies that positively influence the everyday practices of educators and improve the learning experiences of children. The book extensively covers the various contexts that children, from birth to age 8, may engage with during the early years. Structured to complement the Early Years Learning Framework and early childhood education studies, the text draws on theories to discuss the centrality of play to children's development and learning, then delves into the practicalities and challenges of implementing these play-based approaches, and finally discusses the future of play in early childhood contexts. With several learning features that blend theory, context and practical skills, Learning through Play will not only help pre-service teachers to understand play in principle and in practice, but also to advocate articulately for play-based approaches.
ISBN: 9780190304829
Publication Date: 2019
Learning Through Play : Infants in Care : Assisting Early Childhood Educators to Incorporation the Early Years Learning Framework During the first two years of life, children will go through a myriad of physical changes and develop an ability to learn the skills needed for their life ahead. Throughout this time children face the important task of learning to learn and you have the great honour of playing an important role in their development. From birth to 2 years children can grow from being completely adult reliant to an active toddler with growing independence.
Publication Date: 2017
Loose Parts Use loose parts to spark children's creativity and innovation. Loose parts are natural or synthetic found, bought, or upcycled materials that children can move, manipulate, control, and change within their play. Alluring and captivating, they capture children's curiosity, give free reign to their imagination, and motivate learning.
Publication Date: 2015
Messy Play in the Early Years Combining a rich theoretical foundation with practical tips, advice and case studies, this book provides an informative and practical exploration of the qualities, characteristics and learning possibilities of messy play. Packed with valuable insights from research and theory, along with practitioner's experiences, it will bolster understanding and appreciation of messy play and demonstrate how a range of material engagements can enhance young children's development and learning.
Publication Date: 2019
Play in Early Childhood Education Play is fundamental to the way children grow and learn. Play in Early Childhood Education: Learning in Diverse Contexts introduces pre-service teachers to learning theories around play and equips educators with the tools they need to facilitate learning and development through play in educational contexts. The second edition clearly demonstrates links to current Australian government education policy and frameworks, including the Early Years Learning Framework and National Quality Standards, while also providing valuable cross-cultural perspectives.Updated case studies and reflective questions help to unpack complex theory and practical teaching examples, based on current research findings, feature throughout the text. It also offers guidance on a wide range of topics that will be highly relevant in the rapidly changing environments where children are raised and educated, demonstrating diverse approaches to play-based learning and considering new insights and possibilities.
ISBN: 9780190303211
Publication Date: 2017
Play in the Early Years Play is crucial to the learning and development of children in the early years. The third edition of Play in the Early Years is a comprehensive introduction to the theory and practice of play for children from birth to 8 years old. Drawing on classical and contemporary theories, this text examines social, cultural and institutional approaches to play, and explores a range of strategies for successfully integrating play into early years settings and primary classrooms. This edition features a new chapter on conceptual playworlds, which demonstrates what conceptual playworlds look like to infants and toddlers, pre-schoolers, and children transitioning into school. The text features classroom vignettes and photographs designed to help students connect theory to practice, and reflection questions and research activities encourage in-depth reflection and extend learning. Highly regarded by early childhood researchers and practitioners alike, Play in the Early Years remains an essential resource for pre-service students.
ISBN: 9781108821148
Publication Date: 2021
Stepping stones to drama and role-play Develops children’s sense of drama through simple drama games such as freeze framing and mime, and progressing to more character-based and role playing drama.
Publication Date: 2011
Teaching the Arts : early childhood and primary education Teaching the Arts: Early Childhood and Primary Education offers a comprehensive and exciting introduction to Arts education in Australia and New Zealand. In this second edition, each chapter encourages readers to engage with the Arts and provides students with opportunities to develop their understanding and practical skills through reflective questions, examples and activities. Updated content includes: * significant extensions to each chapter, reflecting the five art forms of dance, drama, media, music and visual art * additional practical activities * alignment with current research and theory * extended online resources, including PowerPoint slides for lecturers. Teaching the Arts, Second Edition draws important links to the finalised Australian Curriculum: The Arts, the New Zealand Curriculum, the Early Years Learning Framework and Te Whāriki, and includes substantial references to Indigenous histories and cultures, relationships with Asia and sustainability. Generously illustrated and supported by excellent online resources, Teaching the Arts, Second Edition is an indispensable resource for pre-service teachers.
Publication Date: 2015