Extending Play with Schemas
Extending Play with Schemas
A schema is essentially just a fancy word for "urges," and a play schema refers to the urges children have while they play. Think about that kid that just can't resist throwing dirt or climbing on top of the table-- they're experiencing specific schemas that are influencing how they want to engage with the materials and the world around them.
Cluing into the types of schemas your children are having can help you plan and extend their play in really meaningful ways. It also can help you avoid those frustrating situations where it feels like a child refuses to listen despite knowing they're not supposed to use a toy that way. If you can identify the urge they're having you can provide a safe situation for them to fulfill it in (ie: going outside to climb a tree rather than climb on the coffee table, or providing them with a soft scarf they can shake through the air, rather than a block).
Scroll through the various schemas to familiarize yourself with them, and maybe be inspired by a few new ways to implement them in your program.
Orientation is all about changing your point of view.
What it might look like:
- hanging upside down
- climbing under a table or chairs
- climbing on top of a piece of furniture
New idea to try:
- tape a large piece of paper to the underside of a table and invite your kids to draw on it
Positioning is all about arranging things in a specific way.
What it might look like:
- lining up cars, animals, or other toys
- stacking objects
- straightening rows of shoes
New idea to try:
- use painters tape to create different shapes on the table or floor and provide different blocks or toys that can be arranged along the tape
Connecting is all about joining materials together and taking them apart.
What it might look like:
- connecting train or car tracks
- connecting legos pieces
- attaching things with a string
New idea to try:
- bring out magnatiles with a magnetic dry erase board
Trajectory is all about moving objects around.
What it might look like:
- knocking down blocks
- dropping things
- throwing things
- fake explosions
New idea to try:
- make paper airplanes and throw them from different heights
Enclosure/Container is all about filling space with objects or materials.
What it might look like:
- filling cups with water, sand, or other materials
- climbing into boxes
- squeezing into tight spaces
- building walls/fences around toy animals or people
New idea to try:
- save cardboard boxes from deliveries to use to build forts, tunnels, cars, whatever your children decide
Transporting is all about the urge to carry many things from one place to another, whether in your hands or in a bucket.
What it might look like:
- filling a bucket or basket to carry
- filling and dumping pockets
- filling dump trucks, wagons, or other wheeled device
New idea to try:
- add bags and baskets to your dramatic play area so your children can fill them with different materials, move them, dump them out, fill them back up again etc.
Enveloping is all about wrapping yourself or others up in paper, fabric, or something else.
What it might look like:
- wearing a sheet or other fabric over your head
- wrapping toys in paper or tape
- burying items in the sand
- building a fort
- hide and seek
New idea to try:
- add loose fabrics of different sizes to your dramatic play area so children can wrap themselves, dolls, or stuffed animals up
Rotation is about anything that goes around in a circle-- wheels, knobs, tops, etc.
What it might look like:
- watching the washing machine
- spinning around in a circle
- using a water wheel with sand or water
New idea to try:
- bring cars or balls outside with you and send them down the slide
Transformation is all about watching how things change and testing out cause and effect.
What it might look like:
- mixing paint or other colorful materials
- combining water and sand
- playing with the food on your plate
- dressing and undressing baby dolls
New idea to try:
- creating paint ziplock bags