Explain How Play and Activities Are Used to Support the Development of Speech, Language and Communication

Some people believe that children need to ‘work’ not play, and that playing serves no useful purpose in a learning and development environment.
Play is known to expand the ability to imagine and prepares children for later life when playing out real – life activities.   Play also allows children to extend their concepts, skills, attitudes and achievements.   Play helps to improve speech language and communication because it offers

v   Making choices and decisions
v   Using one’s own ideas and imagination
v   Experimenting
v   Trying out new behaviours and practising old ones
v   Practising skills and learning new ones
v   Exercising, developing and co-ordinating body, mind and brain
v   Adapting or transforming knowledge, attitudes and skills
v   Negotiating
v   Follow an interest or line of enquiry
v   Making up rules and changing them
v   Making mistakes
v   Setting one’s own goals
v   Trying to emulate someone else
v   Using symbols
v   Making sense of puzzling situations, events or equipment
v   Becoming and being confident and enjoying challenges
v   Having fun with friends or familiar adults

There are many different types of social play and they usually take on the form of Parten’s six types:

Unoccupied (play):   when the child is not playing just observing.   A child could be standing in one spot or performing random movements.

Onlooker (behaviour) play: playing passively by watching or conversing with other children engaged in play activities.

Solitary (independent) play: playing by oneself.

Parallel play: playing even in the middle of a group, while remaining engrossed in one’s own activity.

Cooperative play: when children organise themselves into roles with specific goals in mind.   For example, roles of mummy, daddy and baby in a home setting.

Associative play: when children share materials and talk to each other, but do not coordinate play objectives or interests.” (Parten, M.1932).

These different types of play can happen...