Play in High School
Fredericksen states, “Classroom
play can help build community because it offers a tension-free environment in
which students can get to know one another and learn to cooperate to achieve a
common goal” (1999,1). High school can be a difficult time in a teen’s life due
to the lack of community. Teachers can be supportive of his or her students by creating
a sense of community in the classroom. This study focused on interactive play in a
high school setting. Interactive play aids
in the students’ cognitive development similarly to play in the primary
grades. Interactive play refers to
structured games in the classroom that usually correlate with the
curriculum.
Vygotsky (1997), a pioneer in educational psychology, discussed how:
Conventional games organize the higher form of behavior, involve the resolution of rather complex problems of behavior, require guess-work, quickness, and resourcefulness, and the concerted and coordinated efforts of the most diverse capacities and forces. (Vygotsky, 1997, p.90)
Interactive play promotes literacy in the classroom by providing students with the opportunity to interact daily with a group of three or four students. Students learn the needed skills to work collaboratively as a team during interactive play. This study reported several interactive games that are appropriate for older students such as: literary road maps, comparative poetry, cover art, and vocabulary in motion. Each of these interactive games review content material that is discussed in a middle or high school English class. Vocabulary in motion’s objective is for the students to be able to spell words correctly as they are read aloud or as their definition is read aloud.
Students are split in two separate teams. The teams are given a set of cards and the teacher calls out a word. The teams have to use the letters they have been given to try and spell the word before the other team. The study refers to a “call to silence” when a rule is broken (Fredericksen, 1999, p.11). Students will stop and look at the teacher when this occurs. If the class breaks more than two rules, the class ends play for that day. A “call to silence” is one way for teachers to maintain an orderly classroom. Students learn aspects of good sportsmanship and they learn how to encourage their teammates.
Vygotsky (1997), a pioneer in educational psychology, discussed how:
Conventional games organize the higher form of behavior, involve the resolution of rather complex problems of behavior, require guess-work, quickness, and resourcefulness, and the concerted and coordinated efforts of the most diverse capacities and forces. (Vygotsky, 1997, p.90)
Interactive play promotes literacy in the classroom by providing students with the opportunity to interact daily with a group of three or four students. Students learn the needed skills to work collaboratively as a team during interactive play. This study reported several interactive games that are appropriate for older students such as: literary road maps, comparative poetry, cover art, and vocabulary in motion. Each of these interactive games review content material that is discussed in a middle or high school English class. Vocabulary in motion’s objective is for the students to be able to spell words correctly as they are read aloud or as their definition is read aloud.
Students are split in two separate teams. The teams are given a set of cards and the teacher calls out a word. The teams have to use the letters they have been given to try and spell the word before the other team. The study refers to a “call to silence” when a rule is broken (Fredericksen, 1999, p.11). Students will stop and look at the teacher when this occurs. If the class breaks more than two rules, the class ends play for that day. A “call to silence” is one way for teachers to maintain an orderly classroom. Students learn aspects of good sportsmanship and they learn how to encourage their teammates.