Lesson Plan: Why Play Is So Important for Children During Social Distancing
II. While Reading Activities
Word Inference
- play |plā| verb 1 [no object] engage in activity for enjoyment and recreation rather than a serious or practical purpose: the children were playing outside | her friends were playing with their dolls.
- *at loose ends idiom not knowing what to do : not having anything in particular to do; With everyone on vacation she was at loose ends.
- chorus |ˈkôrəs| noun (plural choruses) a simultaneous utterance of something by many people: a growing chorus of complaint | “Good morning,” we replied in chorus. 3 a simultaneous utterance of something by many people: a growing chorus of complaint | “Good morning,” we replied in chorus.
- daunting |ˈdôn(t)iNGˈdän(t)iNG| adjective seeming difficult to deal with in anticipation; intimidating: a daunting task.
- opportunity |ˌäpərˈt(y)o͞onədē| noun (plural opportunities) a set of circumstances that makes it possible to do something: we may see increased opportunities for export | the collection gives students the opportunity of reading works by well-known author
- volition |vōˈliSH(ə)n| noun the faculty or power of using one’s will: without conscious volition she backed into her office.
- necessary |ˈnesəˌserē| adjective 1 required to be done, achieved, or present; needed; essential: members are admitted only after they have gained the necessary experience | it’s not necessary for you to be here.
- essential |əˈsen(t)SHəl| adjective 1 absolutely necessary; extremely important: [with infinitive] : it is essential to keep up-to-date records | fiber is an essential ingredient.
- dwindle |ˈdwindl| verb [no object] diminish gradually in size, amount, or strength: traffic has dwindled to a trickle | (as adjective dwindling) : dwindling resources.
- abrupt |əˈbrəpt| adjective-1 sudden and unexpected: I was surprised by the abrupt change of subject | our round of golf came to an abrupt end on the 13th hole.
Sources:
New Oxford American Dictionary
*Merriam-Webster Dictionary
Grammar Focus: Identifying Prepositions
In the early part of the 2000s, governmental policies prioritized literacy and numeracy skills over less easily tested skills, such as social-emotional ability, despite warnings from early childhood education experts and bodies such as the American Academy of Pediatrics. Average recess time in America — unstructured time for children to engage in the kind of play they want — has shrunk to just 25 minutes, far less than most other countries in the world.
Reading Comprehension
Identify The Speakers
- Laura Huerta Migus, director of the Association of Children’s Museums: “Play, she says, is a necessary component of building social bonds, first with parents and caregivers and then with other adults and peers.”
- Lynneth Solis, a play and education researcher with Project Zero at the Harvard Graduate School of Education: “But play, by its very nature, also prepares individuals to deal with uncertainty and “feel comfortable with risk-taking.”
- Jennifer Fane, a PhD candidate at Flinders University in Australia: “Play can also help clarify precisely what those negative emotions are about: Kids can be terrible communicators, but play is their medium.”
- Professor Paul Ramchandani, the LEGO Professor of Play in Education, Development, and Learning at the University of Cambridge in England: “However, none of us should read too much into what we see in children’s play. . . interpreting children’s play is very fraught.”
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