In PHQP 0008, Play Is Sparked By The Child Not The Toy, Jeff explains that children's minds, not toys, ignite play; experiences and knowledge drive creativity and self-directed learning. Jeff also unpacks actor-observer bias in the classroom, outlines five key developmental domains, and delivers a classic Dad Joke of the Week. Bonus: bagpipe tunes and STEM-friendly spring scales get a shoutout! Episode Video Watch Now: PHQP_0008 Play Is Sparked By The Child Not The Toy Episode Notes Play Is In The Child Not The Toy 3 Reasons ‘Educational’ Toys Are an Epic Fail in Playful Environments The nursery that took all the children’s toys away Too many toys are bad for children, study suggests Actor-Observer Bias 5 Key Developmental Domains Developmental Domains Goddesses Of Bagpipes, Don't Stop Believing Bagpipes The Play Is Sparked By The Child Not The Toy Transcript Welcome to the Playvolution HQ podcast. I'm Jeff Johnson. Thanks for pushing play on with the show. So, I'm going to start with a little bit of a bagpipe update. I mentioned in an earlier episode that I was going through a bagpipe music spree, rabbit hole, and somebody reached out to find out if one that was true. Yes, yes it was. I'm past that now. I've moved on to other things. And what my favorite bagpipe music was. And I think if you go to Spotify, I mean, or where else on the web, you can go to find the goddesses of bagpipes. It's these three young ladies that play bagpipe. And I think if you're looking for a song, try Don't Stop Believing. The bagpipe version of Don't Stop Believing is pretty darn enjoyable. So, check that out. Also, if you've got a favorite bagpipe tune, let me know about it. Let's get into this topic one, part eight of our core value series. We're going to be getting out of this. I think there's 10 or 12 total that I've got put together. Part eight, we're going to be talking about the idea that play is sparked by the child, not the toy. Just because you've got a piece of plastic broccoli does not mean you're going to be interested in playing with plastic broccoli. The interest in what we want to play, what kids want to engage in their play, begins in their minds. It's based on what they've experienced, what they've seen, what they've thought about, what they've imagined, what they enjoy, what they're scared of. But all play begins up here between our ears. And this is why the first condition of play is that play is selected by the players. Because if you are forced into an activity that isn't on your mind, that you're not interested in, that doesn't have value to you, that doesn't start here, you're not going to be really engaged fully in it. And therefore, it's not going to meet the full definition of play. So play starts in our minds. Toys are tools for advancing that play. So back to play begins in the mind. If you have a child who is interested in, oh, say, superheroes, because they watch a lot of superhero movies and they play superhero video games and they have superhero books and superheroes are always on their mind, they're going to show up at your program and want to be superheroes. If you have a child that is really into puppies, puppies are probably going to show up in their play. And we need to figure out a way to support that as adults, as caregivers and parents. Toys are the tools for telling those stories. We've talked earlier in an earlier episode, we got into the definition of loose parts. This is why loose parts are so valuable because they are flexible and can take on lots of different roles based on what the kids are interested in. This is why, I mean, the empty cardboard box is an ideal toy that should be available in multiple sizes and shapes in early learning programs because they offer so much. One day that cardboard box might be a time machine, the next day it might be an x-ray machine, the next day it might be a cave where a bear lives...
