#Chances4Children: Early Years Alliance launches National Week of Play
Fiona Simpson
Monday, June 21, 2021
The Early Years Alliance (EYA) has kicked off a National Week of Play in a bid to put play back at the heart of children’s learning and development.
The week will run from 21-27 June and aims to encourage and inspire early years professionals to ensure that learning through play is at the centre of their practice following more than a year of Covid-19 restrictions.
-
#Chances4Children: Call for sport to bring children together
-
Related news: Psychologists highlight importance of play among young children
Neil Leitch, EYA chief executive, said: “The early years workforce is deeply concerned about the impact that lockdowns and social distancing measures have had on children’s development. Play should be central to young children’s lives, bringing with it so many benefits, and we must make it that way once again.”
Early years professionals are also invited to watch a recorded panel discussion with early years experts Helen Moylett, Professor Cathy Nutbrown, Nancy Stewart and Anni McTavish, talking about the importance of play.
The week also aims to support parents to discover and explore new play ideas for the home learning environment.
EYA will also be sharing daily tips, blogs and videos for practitioners and parents, all on the topic of play.
“For a young child, March 2020 is a lifetime ago and will shape their experiences for a long time to come. As we think about how to support children’s recovery from this hugely challenging period, we must never forget that facilitating children’s learning through play – and helping parents and caregivers to do the same – will be the key mechanism for doing that,” Leitch added.
Everyone who signs up for Play Week will receive a free resource pack.
The resource pack is available to download here.