Learning Through Play

Learning through play is a term that gets thrown around for littles a lot. I have a 3 year old and every preschool I looked at described their pedagogy as "learning through play". I want to learn through play every day that I can. I realize sometimes we have to read, discuss and focus on mechanics but I'm always trying to think about how to make lessons more playful. In June I borrowed a mega bubble machine from ASB and for 4 photos classes we ran bubbles and photographed them. It's hard to photograph bubbles. We worked through lighting and wind issues, background and color issues. The students experimented, hypothesized and brainstormed. They tried things, it failed and they tried other things. This was all masked under the guise of "play". There was not a single person who could approach that bubble station and not smile. As I start the new year I am pumped about all the things I'm going to learn with my students but also all the smiles and laughs and fun times we will have while learning. Happy New School Year!