5 Playful Learning Experiences: Build Growth Mindset & Maximize Learning

There is substantial research that shows students learn through play. However, in our classrooms, it can seem difficult to incorporate play, when there are so many standards and content to cover. 

I want to share with you a few simple ways we can transform our classrooms into a playful atmosphere for learning, that will still allow us to teach everything our students need. 

Playful Learning Experience 1 - Imagination Hour

Imagination Hour is a playful learning experience that encourages creativity and growth mindset. During a designated Imagination Hour time, students will have the opportunity to explore with various supplies and make creations of their choosing. It is helpful to have bins on each table with supplies.

Varying the supplies each week will allow students to explore a variety of possibilities and projects. These supplies can be paper, blocks, small craft items, or anything they can create with. They will share their creations and work together with peers to revise, modify, and create again. Students might build a house, an airplane, a swimming pool, anything they can imagine and create!

During this playful experience, focus on the concepts of celebrating mistakes and building trust. Students should learn during this time that there is no right answer and that mistakes are okay. This is a god time to build vocabulary, as well as speaking and listening skills.

The Growth Mindset Coach, written by Annie Brock and Heather Hundley is an excellent resource for encouraging students to build their own growth mindset. This book is full of ideas for teachers to use throughout the year to help their students grow and learn.

During Imagination Hour, students will learn through trying new things, discussing with peers, making revisions and trying again. Students will learn they can trust their peers and teachers to offer advice and ideas, in order to build upon their existing ideas.

Imagination Hour is a playful learning experience that builds growth mindset and encourages creative thinking. Here are a few tips for implementation.

• Imagination Hour might be an experience added to an afternoon time block based on classroom scheduling.  It doesn't have to be an entire hour. Try to be consistent and allow a good amount of time for students to create, share and discuss.

• It is helpful to keep student portfolios with photos to track and evaluate progress. These portfolios can track both independent thinking and basic skills. Jot down notes of what students are working on and take pictures each day to document progress. Photograph the projects of 4-5 students each day and rotate through your class list. This will ensure that progress is documented regularly, and no student is missed. 

• It is likely that some students might have a hard time coming up with ideas for this unstructured activity, especially those used to more structured activities. This struggle can be overcome through gently encouraging and praising their efforts and ideas. Students will gradually become more comfortable with stepping outside of their comfort zones as they continue through the year. 

• Two great resources to utilize are The Growth Mindset Playbook and Phrases for Growth Mindset, both written by Annie Brock and Heather Hundley. The later is my favorite to use during Imagination Hour. It's perfect for coming up with phrases and feedback to encourage students while they are creating.

• It will be helpful for teachers to consistently add imagination hour to weekly lesson plans in order to ensure that it is included on a regular basis. In addition, scheduling a time to work on student portfolios for this learning experience would be helpful. Having a set plan will ensure that imagination hour remains consistent throughout the year. 

2 - Morning Movement Choices

Morning Movement Choices can be implemented when students arrive to class each day. These choices include playful learning activities involving movement around the classroom. Most importantly, students will be able to choose their movement activities.

The assortment of activities can vary from

• scavenger hunts
• write the room with clipboards
• block building
• word hunts (Write words on sentence strips and hide them around the room for students to find.)
• any activity that incorporates students moving

These activities will be very different from the typical paper/pencil activity that is completed at a desk for a typical morning work activity. Each movement choice will encourage students to move throughout the room, utilize various flexible seating options and talk with their peers.

Research shows that students learn more when they are able to move. This playful learning experience will encourage students to learn in a playful way as they move throughout the classroom. Tips for implementation:

• Morning movement choices happen daily for morning activity while students arrive, unpack, etc. The importance of having this experience daily will build consistency and trust among students. 

• Keeping this activity consistent ensures that students know what to expect each day when they enter the classroom. This allows them to feel more comfortable and less anxious upon arriving. 

• Incorporating the option of student choice with this experience will build independence and allow students to feel that their teachers trusts and values them.

• Creating and managing student portfolios with observation notes and photos of students working during morning movement choices is helpful for evaluation and student progress.

• Students might have a hard time controlling some of their movements,  such as running in the classroom, or have a hard time with boundaries. It is important to have boundaries set in place so students know the expectations for morning movement choices.
• By discussing and establishing boundaries early on, and encouraging students to be a part of that discussion, students will fee more confident in this experience. 

• In order to create consistency and reduce anxiety among students, ensure that morning movement choices are added to weekly lesson plans. Be sure to plan morning movement choices, as well as time to document portfolio work each week. Creating a rotating schedule of movement choices can be helpful. 

• Less negative behaviors occur when students are able to move, allowing a more positive learning environment! 

Playful Learning Experience 3 - Monthly Classroom Speakers

This playful learning experience encourages questioning and curiosity. Each month, the classroom will welcome a visitor as a classroom speaker to share a playful experience or activity with the class. Students will ask questions, have conversations and learn about new opportunities in an open ended atmosphere. 

The importance here is encouraging individuals from the community to connect the classroom experience to playful learning outside of the classroom. Adults might share about their jobs, a trip they went on, and an experience of helping others. This playful learning experience encourages creativity and community building. It allows students to see adults as learners too!

Seeing adults from outside of the classroom engaging in play will help students understand that playful learning can happen everywhere. Here are some implementation tips:  

• Try to schedule one classroom per month.

• Utilize student survey questions before and after each visitor to help evaluate the impact, as well as the effectiveness of this learning experience. These questions can also help plan upcoming visits. 

• There might be challenges with scheduling outside visitors due to school rules or availability. Being flexible with scheduling and open to options will help overcome this challenge. 
• Discuss possible discussion questions with your class before the visitor arrives.

4 - Creative Journaling

For this playful learning experience, students will journal daily through playful journaling in a designated notebook.

Creative journaling inspires creativity and playful thinking. Below are tips for implementation.

• Select a designated daily time for students to journal playfully. This might include drawing, writing, or labeling.

• Students are encouraged to choose what they would like to write or draw. They are encouraged with growth mindset phrases. Again, a great reference here is Phrases for Growth Mindset by Annie Brock and Heather Hundley

• Use the journal as an evaluation tool of progression and to gauge effectiveness of this playful learning experience.

• Students might struggle with the less structured task and might initially have a hard time coming up with ideas. Often students are used to being given a journaling prompt or started sentence. This approach is much more playful and allows for much more creativity. Students can be encouraged to overcome their hesitations through gentle encouragement and the use of growth mindset phrases. 

• Ensure that this time is included in weekly and daily lesson plans. 

Playful Learning Experience 5 - Daily Student Check-In

Daily check-ins are just that! The teacher checking in each day with some students. On a daily basis, the teacher will have a check in with one or two students. The daily number of students would depend on class size and time. Each student check-in will be about a 5 minute check-in, just getting to know the student, casual talk and simple question and answer.

The daily student check-ins will foster a sense of belonging and encouragement. During these check in, focus on love first, teach second. Build trust and get to know your students. What is their favorite food? Do they have pets? What do they like to do for fun? What is their favorite TV show?

Consistency is important here because over time, the check ins will help foster a relationship between the students and teacher. That relationship will allow students to be comfortable and relaxed allowing them to playfully learn within the classroom.

Follow these tips to help make daily check ins an effective strategy.

• Be consistent about implementing check ins at a scheduled time each day.

• Use a student survey and teacher reflection in order to determine the impact and effectiveness of the daily check-ins. These tools will help with discover changes that might need to be made to the daily check ins. 

• Finding time and setting up a scheduling might be difficult. However, establishing a set plan based on the class schedule with a student checklist, it will be easier to ensure that no students are missed for the daily check-in. 

• Create a checklist to ensure all students are scheduled for a check-in, and teacher reflection will be helpful to ensure that the teacher is reaching and connecting with each student. 

Give yourself flexibility as you being to implement these 5 playful learning experiences in your classroom. Start with one playful learning experience. Once the expectations and routine have been established for that learning experience, then begin to add another. Continue until you are able to incorporate all of the experiences on a regular basis.

Creating a classroom environment based on playful learning allows young learners to maximize their potential and make meaningful connections. As you work towards this transition, reach out to other educators, and share ideas and strategies that are successful. Adults can learn through playful learning too! Try new ideas, collaborate, reflect and try again. Remember, creativity is in the doing. What are you and your students doing? Start the doing today!