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Full-Text Articles in Early Childhood Education
Implementing Self-Selected Outdoor Play For Preschoolers, Shannon Jensen
Implementing Self-Selected Outdoor Play For Preschoolers, Shannon Jensen
Master's Theses & Capstone Projects
As preschool-aged children spend more time using electronic devices and studying academic content, they are spending increasingly less time playing outdoors. Preschoolers spend a large portion of their days participating in sedentary activities. Outdoor play facilitates children' s development and learning in many areas including health, social and emotional skills, and motor skills. Outdoor play has also been shown to assist children with academic learning. Early childhood professionals spend significant amounts of time with young children and are largely responsible for providing outdoor play experiences for the children within their care. This school improvement plan documents the need for an …
Toddler Play Preferences And The Teacher’S Role In The Outdoor Play Environment, Keting Chen, Erin E. Hamel
Toddler Play Preferences And The Teacher’S Role In The Outdoor Play Environment, Keting Chen, Erin E. Hamel
Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications
Direct experience with nature is a primary component of environmental education and especially beneficial for young children. The present study examined the outdoor play preferences of toddlers and investigated the role teachers play in the outdoor space. Toddlers’ outdoor play was video recorded by GoPro cameras and coded for preferred play locations and initiator of the play. Results showed that the three most preferred spaces for toddlers in the outdoor classroom were the sandbox, swing area, and play structures; least frequently visited were open areas close to the classrooms, the garden, and the tree area. In addition, toddlers initiated play …