Science and the Young Child This is a resource about how Neurology and Play are incorporated into developmentally appropriate science activities utilizing the essential questioning skills of scientific inquiry in young children.

1. Playing with Science

2. Play a nd Lea rning
“Play is the highest form of research.”
— Albert Einstein

3. “To develop the area of the brain responsible for
higher-order thinking, children need to have rich
experiences that stimulate all of their senses.
For a child, play is a critical path to those
experiences that engage their senses and provide
the foundation for future learning.”
-Kathy Hirsh-Pasek, Professor of psychology, Temple University
-

4. “[Children] integrate theory and data in ways that are
startlingly vigorous and precise and quantifiable.”
-Laura Shultz, MIT, Boston Children's Museum
Spontaneous Play Promotes:
o Curiosity
o Focused attention
o Brain plasticity
o Ability to seek information
o Healthy Brain architecture
-University of Oregon Brain Development Lab
Play in learning allows students to gain knowledge in
“memorable and emotionally satisfying” ways.
(Harlan et al. 2012)

5. Play a nd Hea lth
“Understand that play is the work of childhood…
We have to invest in childhood and recognize
that it is a unique time…that sets up
the next generation.”
– Dr. Ken Ginsberg, Pediatrician and Child Development Researcher,
Children’s Hospital Philadelphia, Boston Children’s Museum

6. Play is so essential to the healthy development of
children that the United Nations recognized that
Play is a Human Right
that each child on earth is entitled to.

7. Play supports emotional and mental health
across multiple intelligences:
Linguistic { conversation, social scripts}
Bodily-kinesthetic { how my body moves}
Intrapersonal { what I know about me}
Interpersonal { what I know about us}
Spatial { how I fit in the world}
Musical connects brain hemispheres,
exercises language
centers in the brain)
Logical/Mathematical more or less,
bigger or smaller
Naturalist {Can we go outside?}
Play supports emotional and mental health
across multiple intelligences:

8. Play and Language Development
“The more words they hear when they are
very very young, the faster and more fully
their language develops.”
–Betty Bardige, Boston Children’s Museum

9. Play is a great place to learn new words!
Infants
Talk a lot, the more they hear the more
they learn basics of conversation and
communication
Peek-a-boo
Imitating sounds and smiles
Silly questions
Toddlers
Play allows a toddler to try new words
and experience new situations and the
vocabulary that accompanies them
Silly songs-simple concepts
Movement games-body parts, action
words
Pretend play- baby dolls, doctor, farmer,
fireman
Active play- names of places and actions
Preschool and Kindergarten Cooperative
play
Through play kids learn new words
from each other and build productive
play on each others ideas.
Wordplay, songs, story telling-
Foundation for reading
Dramatic play- Social scripts, imaginary
conversation

10. Play and Social Emotional Development
Explorative play allows children to develop:
o Focus and self control
o Perspective taking
o Communicating
o Making connections
o Critical thinking
o Taking on challenges
o Self directed, engaged learning
-Ellen Galinsky, Author Mind in the Making, Boston
Children’s Museum

11. Play and Creativity
“Play is not Anarchy. Play has rules, especially
when it’s group play. When kids play tea party
or cops and robbers they’re following a script
that they’ve agreed to. And it’s this code
negotiation that leads to productive play.”
– T i m B r o w n , D e s i g n e r, T E D Ta l k , C r e a t i v i t y a n d P l a y

12. Play and Cultural Differences
“It is widely accepted that group play serves as an
initiation into a wider cultural life, critical to
future success, academically and professionally.”
-Boston Children’s Museum

13. Incorporating Science in Play!
• GO OUTSIDE!
– Take walks, spend time in nature. Point out
interesting things as you explore nature together
– Answer questions your child may have honestly.
Don’t be afraid to include scientific language “why
is the sky blue” is one of these great questions,
not to be ignored.
– Observation is the foundation of the scientific
theory. Validate your child’s observations and
expand on their ideas.

14. Incorporating Science into Play
“…strive to provide a rich environment that
stimulates children’s natural curiosity and
creativity.”- Boston Children’s Museum
• This doesn’t mean that you need to go buy a bunch of science
toys.
• Represent the real world in your child’s play area. Swapping
out items from around the house every so often can help your
child create new play scenarios with new experiences and
vocabulary.
• Create science experiments with your children- The internet is
full of great ideas. Your child’s teachers are also a good
resource for easy to do and inexpensive home experiments.

15. Incorporating Science into Play
Extend your child’s knowledge of the world around them.
Visit new parks, zoo’s, museums, and performances.
Use new words often and try not to assume your child
won’t understand a word or concept because it’s new.
Discuss new experiences and phenomenon with your
children, prompting them to reflect and value their
observations.

16. Sources
Power of Play
Boston Children’s
museum
http://www.bostonchildr
ensmuseum.org/power-
of-play
Kathy Hirsh-Pasek, Professor of psychology, Temple University
Laura Shultz, MIT, Boston Children's Museum
Dr. Ken Ginsberg, Pediatrician and Child Development
Researcher, Children’s Hospital Philadelphia, Boston Children’s
Museum
Betty Bardige, Boston Children’s Museum
Tim Brown, Designer, TED Talk, Creativity and Play
Ellen Galinsky, Author Mind in the Making, Boston
Children’s Museum
Harlan et al Harlan, Jean D. and Mary S. Rivkin. Science Experiences
for the Early Childhood Years. Tenth Edition. Upper Saddle
River: Pearson, 2012. p.19