From Play to Practice


Book Description

Describes play workshop experiences that give educators a deeper understanding of play-based learning and illustrate the power of play.




Playwork: Theory And Practice


Book Description

This book brings together theoretical perspectives and practical advice to improve playwork practice. There are chapters on the role of adventure playgrounds; the challenge of starting a playwork section in a local authority; and the value of networking.




Play Practice


Book Description

Play Practice: Engaging and Developing Skilled Players, Second Edition, provides an alternative to traditional sport instruction. This innovative and authentic approach to teaching sports combines contemporary theory with the experience of practical and reflective work in real sport environments. Coauthors Alan Launder and Wendy Piltz, both with wide-ranging experience as players, teachers, and coaches, expand and update the play practice approach they presented in the first edition and show how it can be used to help improve sport skills for players of all ages and abilities. This flexible model of sport pedagogy can be applied as a whole or one element at a time. It covers a wide range of team and individual sports, including archery, table tennis, flag football, snow skiing, cricket, and track and field. Plus, you’ll find a wealth of field-tested ideas for working with diverse learners in schools and communities. The second edition highlights the significance of key terms such as games sense, technique, resilience, and fair play. It also provides new information relating to the complexity of learning and addresses the difficulties beginners face in the learning process. The second edition of Play Practice integrates a thorough analysis of skilled performance with an understanding of the conditions under which people best learn. It also shows how the strategies of simplifying, shaping, focusing, and enhancing can help you create situations to maximize learning and positively influence the attitudes of learners. Over 130 illustrations and photos demonstrate specific approaches, ideas that can work for multiple sports, and ways to apply the approach with beginners through elite players. Summary sections in each chapter help you quickly identify and review key topics. And two bonus chapters about the origins, evolution, and theoretical bases for Play Practice are available free for download at www.HumanKinetics.com/PlayPractice. Play Practice is based on the idea that an individual’s commitment to achieving mastery is a powerful motivator for learning. Learn to harness these motivators and create enjoyable practice situations in which learners young and old, whether resistant beginners or highly motivated professionals, are encouraged to strive for excellence.




The Essence of Play


Book Description

A unique companion to professional play practice! All play professionals are united in their belief that play is important for children’s development – and there are inherent characteristics of play that underpin professional play practice across contexts. Providing an overarching concept of play, drawing together the evidence base across disciplines and linking theory to practice, The Essence of Play is the ideal handbook for all those working with children. Play acts as a natural resource for children to meet physical, intellectual and emotional challenges and this book, unusually, considers play from the perspectives of children rather than adults. It provides a baseline of shared knowledge for all play professionals, exploring the fundamental value of play rather than a ‘how to’ approach to practice. It considers: the therapeutic potential inherent in play; how play reflects and promotes physical, emotional, intellectual, linguistic and social abilities; the emergence of different types of play skills and why these are important; cross-cultural patterns in play, gender, atypicality and adversity, highlighting the relevance of these issues to professional play practice; the benefits of utilising play for assessment and other professional practice issues such as ethical play practice, balancing risk with health and safety and the creation and management of boundaries. This text is designed for students and practitioners working with children across the helping professions, including early years education, play therapy, playwork, childcare, social care, nursing and allied health. Each chapter provides directed reading and small reflective tasks to encourage readers to digest key issues.




Evolutionary Playwork and Reflective Analytic Practice


Book Description

Evolutionary Playwork and Reflective Analytic Practice will enable playwork students, practitioners and researchers to reassess the impact and purpose of playwork on children.




Practice Less, Play More


Book Description

*** SPECIAL LAUNCH PRICE GOES AWAY MARCH 1ST *** If you''re a Self-Taught Guitarist wanting to play songs without spending all your time practicing, this may be the most important book you ever read... But first a warning: this book is NOT for everyone... This isn''t one of those "practice until your fingers bleed" or "cram confusing theory into your mind" type of guitar instruction books. There are plenty of those available (i.e. practice scales & exercises for hours per day and feel guilty if you don''t). When I first decided to learn to play guitar, I read all the guitar books for beginners and focused on developing a lot of areas like scales, theory, and exercises that promised me one day I''d be able to play the songs I loved. The problem is, when you approach practice like that, you have a lot of "stuff" to practice, but you usually have no REAL MUSIC to show for it, ending up with what I call Mountain Climber Syndrome. You feel like eventually, your hard work is going to pay off, everything will come together, and you''ll finally be able to play songs. Why not play songs right away instead? The simple, three-step system in this book requires a slight shift in the way you think about practicing, but leaves you with lots of songs, confidence, and a lifelong skill you can use any time you want to learn the songs you love ON DEMAND. With that said, let''s jump right in... Practice Less, Play More! is about getting immediate results from your guitar. This means ONLY focusing on the things that help you play songs (both BEFORE practice & AFTER practice). The idea is to divide your guitar practice into 3 phases: The first phase focuses on priming your mind so you have the right mindsets & techniques to learn songs quickly and all of the right materials to get the most out of your practice sessions. The second phase focuses on practice technique, showing you exactly how to break a song down and quickly program each part into your fingers. Far too few guitar practice books explain this clearly! The final phase focuses on the best mindsets & techniques to use when you switch out of Practice Mode and are actually playing songs, so you can play them as effortlessly as possible and have a blast doing it. It is called "Practice Less, Play More!", because you are constantly building momentum (and your song Playlist) without having to endure hours of mind-numbing practice. It is actually an easier, less-stressful approach to playing guitar. Not only that, this book shows you: How to get songs to performance-quality within days... You should practice guitar parts over & over until you master them, right? WRONG! (find out why in Chp 7) How to create a practice routine you enjoy and can actually stick to (even if you have a super busy schedule) When is the best time to practice for long-lasting results 5 ways to cut your practice time in half and virtually guarantee you make progress each time you pick up your guitar What to think about while you''re playing songs (the answer may surprise you) How to reduce the amount of mistakes you make and exactly what to do when you make one (most Beginners are doing the opposite!) One practice method you should NEVER use if you want rapid results on guitar Say goodbye to guessing what to practice next and finally build a Playlist of songs you''re proud to play on guitar! The book is an easy read and will feel like we''re just chatting, as I tell you my best stories from on & off tour and show you my best strategies for learning songs. Order Now Before The Price Increases ***All proceeds from this book are being used to create new programs for cancer patients and their caregivers. Thank you for your support!




Playwork: Theory and Practice


Book Description

"[An] excellent book... With its breadth of discourse, it held my attention throughout. ... This book is informative, but also challenges views on the play experience and the playwork profession. It will be of interest to all those that work and play with young children. The place of playwork and playworkers... is described with passion: readers cannot help but be totally absorbed by this book." Early Years, Vol 24, No 1, March 2004 Children learn and develop through their play. In today's world the opportunities for that to happen are increasingly restricted. The profession of playwork seeks to reintroduce such opportunities, and so enable children to achieve their full potential. This book brings together many leading names in the playwork field, to produce a text that has something for everyone. The in-depth exploration of a range of theoretical perspectives will appeal to both playwork students and practising playworkers. Experienced practitioners offer sound practical advice about ways of improving playwork practice. There are chapters on the role of adventure playgrounds (past, present and future); the challenge of starting a playwork section in a local authority; and the value of networking. Contributors explore the essence of play; the historical roots of playwork; and the role of play cues in human and animal behaviour. There is an exploration of the astounding impact of a therapeutic playwork project on the development of a group of abandoned children in Romania. The final chapter reinforces the need for playworkers to be reflective practitioners in all aspects of their work.




Playwork Practice at the Margins


Book Description

Playwork Practice at the Margins explores the circumstances where playwork practice intersects with practice from diverse contexts and settings, encompassing disciplines such as health, education, early intervention and community development. Each chapter focuses on a research project situated in a unique setting or space such as zoos, hospitals, refuges and rainforests. In these settings, the authors reflect on Playwork Principles and consider these in relation to the theory, research, design and findings of their project. By presenting research from settings at the margins of traditional playwork, the authors use shared values and principles to consider the significance of playwork when embedded in transdisciplinary work. The book is underpinned by a model of reflective thinking that is used to examine how playwork practice is intertwined with knowledge from other disciplines. With a range of international contributions from both researchers and practitioners, this is the ideal text for academics and researchers in the fields of early childhood education, allied health, community development and social work disciplines as well as human geographers and practitioners in children’s services worldwide.




Play Practice


Book Description

This new edition covers a broader variety of disciplines including exercise science, kinesiology, movement studies, physical education, sport science and sport studies.