Game lessons give preschoolers a solid foundation
Tonny Sijm has been involved in education for almost fifty years and has seen it change a lot. The kindergarten teacher sees it as her mission to put the game lesson for toddlers back on the map.
Image: Angeliek de Jonge
Game lessons like Laying a handkerchief, Little train went out, The seven jump, It's so dark in the basement and all kinds of tap games. Who remembers them? And which kindergarten teacher does she regularly use in the group? According to Tonny Sijm (64), it still happens, but too little. Until a few years ago, she worked as a kindergarten teacher at primary school De Peppel in Middenmeer, but was rejected due to illness. Now she is wholeheartedly committed to volunteering at the schools of the Surplus Foundation. “I give game lessons there, among other things, because I think it is very important that this knowledge is not lost.”
Experience with your body
According to Sijm, a game lesson is pleasant and fun, but so much more. “Children learn to orient themselves spatially. It is one of the calculation, writing and reading conditions. Yet I often see that that step is skipped, resulting in unnecessary loss of calculations, for example. It is essential to experience with your body what is in front of, behind, next to, above and below. After that, children can apply this on the flat surface to learn to read, write and count properly.”
The spatial orientation already starts when you walk to the playroom. Tonny: “You can name that Joep in front walking in line and Safanour at the back. we walk along the classroom of group 4 and go left. This way you pick up a lot of learning moments before the real game lesson starts.” Also during the game lesson itself she always mentions what they do. In addition to the spatial orientation, the vocabulary is thereby expanded in a playful way. The game lesson also increases self-confidence. “Children dare more from play. For example, a quiet child can take the lead role in a circle game.”
Children dare more from play
Favorite
One of Sijm's favorite game lessons is Hutspot. As a teacher, you stir a huge imaginary pan in the middle of the room. The children are scattered around the corners of the playroom and are ingredients for the stew: potatoes, onions, carrots and meatballs. The teacher first calls the group of potatoes to come into the pan. The toddlers walk in circles around the stirring cook. The hotter the food gets, the faster they have to move, until the teacher yells: 'Burned!'. Then they quickly run back to their place and the cook tries to catch them.
At Hutspot and other game lessons, Sijm uses virtually no attributes or devices. That's one of the differences with gym class. Play lessons are all about teamwork, having fun and learning through play. “The game lesson promotes group feeling and the atmosphere. You have fun together. Something as simple as a big toddler crawling under the legs of a little one with a release tag can be very funny," says Tonny with a laugh. “Partly because of that pleasure, I was always so one with my class. That gave a very warm and safe feeling.”
The game lesson promotes group feeling and atmosphere
Playing outside
Tonny often sees that warm feeling in kindergartens, but she also sees frustrated teachers who are searching and don't always know what to offer toddlers. “This is partly because many teacher training colleges pay too little attention to pre-primary education. I see schools that buy a pre-primary method and stick to it, because they don't really know what real pre-primary education is. The game lesson alone will not immediately change that, but it is a good start.”
Pabos pay too little attention to nursery education
Tonny did not take a teacher training course himself, but completed the three-year Kindergarten Leidster Training School (KLOS) in Bergen in 1976. There, didactics, methodology and psychology of the young child were central. “As a 'klosser' we learned songs, stories, puppet shows and games. I had a little preparation on paper and the lesson itself lasted half an hour. Nowadays it is often the other way around: teachers have sheets full of goals and the lesson lasts maybe ten minutes. In that you don't have enough time to really see the kids and be flexible. So take the time for your game lesson. Then you can observe the children well and observing is one of the pillars of good pre-primary education.”
Learning workshops
How do you start a game lesson if you have little knowledge of it? “You can learn from colleagues who still teach games. on Internet *For more information, go to studioswing.nl where Tonny Sijm shares knowledge about game lesson together with other former bobbins and movement entrepreneur Lenneke Gentlefind your games. When playing outside you can also shout: Who is participating in a game? Then you sing, for example, Little Train went out and you drive nicely with the class across the schoolyard. Above all, make sure you have fun with your class”, concludes Sijm.
The national Young Child conference will be held in Bussum on April 6, 2022. This is the conference for employees in the lower classes. Teachers, construction coordinators and directors, register and forward it to colleagues.
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