Play to Learn : A Workshop for Teachers

This is the one thing that we don’t have to learn. This is the one thing that we all have a natural propensity for and it is the one thing that we all enjoy-the act of play. It is a universal thread in all human development regardless of race, class, region and belief system.

Educational planners and practitioners in India have also used play and activity as a scaffolding for children to achieve learning objectives in the early grades. Are there some experiences that are unique to our country? What are the points of convergence and divergence with the variegated cultural practices and beliefs around childhood ? Where are the interfaces between learned theory and actual situations on the ground ? What are the challenges in implementing play-based classroom activities In overcrowded multilingual classrooms where materials may be scarce? How does play get transformed in a multi-grade classroom? Can such challenging situations that may be common in resource poor schools, be turned into opportunities for greater sensitivity and a more holistic definition of education?

The Pratham Books-Jumpstart session on Aug 26, 2014 will give a hands-on opportunity to explore such questions and more. Eminent academics, Dr Asha Singh Associate Professor Lady Irwin College and Ms Amukta Mahapatra, Director, Schoolscape will lead a workshop for early grade teachers on the use of play in learning. The backdrop of theory will be lit up by incandescent questions from real practice. The participants will get a chance to work in groups to try out fresh ideas with the benefit of expert facilitation. It will be experiential learning at its best…because after all, it will all be child’s play