Play Time: The art of play-led learning
6 Sep 2024
Play-led learning is a vital part of how we engage with very young children. Two projects we're running at the moment really focus on this area Create Space - a brand new Bristol Old Vic project funded by Youth Music and in partnership with Redcliffe Nursery School (more on that soon)- and Little Musical Theatre which begins next month and brings pre-school children and their adults into the theatre for a morning of song and dance.
We spoke to facilitator Mia Macleod about her approach.
Mia Macleod
Workshop Facilitator for Little Musical Theatre
- Tell us a bit about the work you do?
Hello I’m Mia and I am a workshop facilitator with The Bristol Old Vic, leading our Early Years, Year 1-2 group and our Little Musical Theatre sessions. As well as facilitating, I am an actor, singer and theatre maker, using my love of music and movement in my work. I was lucky enough to be involved with the creation of Bristol Old Vic’s Baby Tales, a cabaret for little ones, and was inspired to create more experiences for our youngest audience members and their adults.
In my work with young people, I aim to help build their confidence and develop key social and theatrical skills along the way. Theatre played a huge part in helping me find my voice, so as a facilitator I celebrate individuality and creativity.
2. What can you tell us about the project you’re doing with BOV?
Little Musical Theatre starts in October this year and is a weekly workshop for adults and their little ones to share 45 minutes of engaging musical play. We use songs and activities to help develop listening and sharing skills in a playful environment, from creating the sound of the ocean to choreographing our own animal dance, we will sing and dance through the morning together.
In our sessions we encourage creativity and play in a safe environment. Each week follows a similar pattern so the little ones can fall into a rhythm and slowly begin to learn our songs. A particular favourite of mine is the Flower Song which is a moment for us all to focus and relax before the end of the session!
It’s been wonderful seeing the little ones become more confident in the room and I’m excited to be back for more singing and silly fun!
3. Can you tell us a bit about play-led learning and why it’s important?
Play-led learning is about making learning more interactive and fun, using play as a tool. Especially for young people, play helps them to engage with the world around them, to communicate their ideas and build stronger social interactions. Drama and music is already a wonderful tool for confidence building and pairing this with play allows for young people to truly express themselves in a stress-free environment.
Within my sessions I create a structure which allows for child-led play, and play can be different for everyone. You may have one child engage with playing with bubbles while another enjoys figuring out the actions to a song; both are valid forms of play and have different development benefits. An important part of play-led learning is that the young people feel safe to make choices and we are there to help them find and express their own unique creativity.
4. Do you think we can all do with a more playful approach to life?
Oh 100%, play can help our well-being and reduce stress so we should be playful no matter our age! Just like kids, we have different things that spark excitement so we will have different ways of accessing play. Maybe you like the social aspects of play so enjoy pub quizzes or going on walks with friends, or maybe you enjoy exploring so you like to try new foods and love wandering around Ikea!
There are playful opportunities all around us and through play we can begin to create a better work-life balance and even make the more stressful parts of our day a little less taxing.
Children are taught to play from a young age, and while playing they learn more about themselves and how to communicate their thoughts and feelings with others. At times it seems as adults we forget or neglect that important aspect of our life, so it can’t hurt to think more playfully and go back to what makes you happy and think: how can I add more of that to my day?
