Article 7: NAVTIKA VOL XV NO. 3 (April 2025 -July 2025)
By Dr. Paramjit Singh
INTRODUCTION
To the concept of Early Childhood Education with story telling and play way methods
Early Childhood Education (ECE), or nursery education, is a branch of education theory that relates to teaching children (formally and informally) from birth up to the age of eight. Developing the emotional, social, and cognitive abilities necessary for children to become lifelong learners is the goal of Early Childhood Education (ECE). Child development involves the biological, psychological, and emotional changes that occur in human beings between birth and the conclusion of adolescence. It is, particularly from birth to five years, a foundation for a prosperous and sustainable society.
‘Children are like wet cement, whatever falls on them makes an impression’
Storytelling and play-based methods are a timeless tradition that transcends cultures, languages, and generations. It has the remarkable ability to captivate minds, stir emotions, and impart invaluable life lessons. Storytelling is a potent tool in the field of early childhood education for establishing moral principles and cultivating empathy in young brains and hearts. This article explores the significant influence that storytelling has on a child’s moral and emotional growth and guides how parents and teachers can best utilize it. The play-way method of teaching is one of the newest trends in the field of education. It alludes to a child’s healthy development. It is carried out concerning several domains, including information, emotions, feelings, and the development of motor skills. The focus of this teaching approach is on a child’s subjective and emotional growth. Participating in sports or games is crucial to this teaching approach. The technique that revolves around activity-based learning is the driving force behind this entire philosophy. The process of play-way method of teaching even promotes and helps build creativity and expressive skills among young kids.
The play-way method of teaching propagates teaching through various interesting activities instead of books. Henry Caldwell Cook was the one who created this teaching strategy. The Play Way was written by this British educationist. The book describes how doing anything is always a better learning procedure than reading or listening, and that young children always perform better when they are taught through the method of playing. He believed that experience, not only reading and listening, was the only source of wisdom. Teachers who use the play-way approach of instruction tend to follow the child’s natural tendencies so that he can learn while having fun.
ABSTRACT
Childhood Education (EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION (ECE)) fosters emotional, social, and cognitive development through storytelling and the play-way method. Storytelling builds empathy, moral values, and emotional intelligence, while play-based learning promotes creativity, physical growth, and social interaction. Together, they create an engaging, inclusive, and joyful environment, preparing children with 21st-century skills for lifelong learning and holistic development.
Characteristics of the Play Way Method
The play-way method of teaching teaches a great deal to the children as well as the teachers. They also learn to be patient and mould themselves according to the child’s moods, wishes, and imagination. This approach differs greatly from all previous approaches. Let us study some of the main characteristics of this method.
- Active: While playing actively, the children can use both their bodies as well as brains. They accomplish this by mixing the ingredients and environment with other people.
- Courageous and daring: While playing, the kids can explore new and unknown ideas. When they involve themselves in dangerous but courageous games, then they can securely understand these concepts within the securities of their homes.
- Communicative: Playing games or any kind of sports acts as a big chance for the children to be able to share all kinds of information, knowledge, and comprehension. They can interact orally by using their words or body gestures and other non-verbal cues. These transmitted messages or information may be simple or occasionally challenging to understand.
- Enjoyable: For children as well as adults, playing is always fun. They usually get thrilled and like playing. It’s important to teach kids that playing should be enjoyable rather than solely focused on winning.
- Consequences of playing games: Playing games gives children many chances to learn something new. They help the kids learn more, evaluate their fresh and original hypotheses, and raise their level of knowledge, comprehension, and skills.
- Social and interactive: Playing games with other children gives the kids a unique chance to make new friends. They can interact more with other people, which makes them extroverted and confident. They get more gregarious and extroverted, which promotes general beneficial personal development.
- Remedial: Playing is remedial for young children. It helps them relieve their stress and process new and different kinds of positive emotions and feelings.
- Self-Chosen: Playing games is a self-chosen, on-the-spot chase that young children alter based on their mood and whim. They should be able to alter the story, its characters, occasions, and places depending on their choices.
Creating Connections
The play-way method of teaching lets the children learn new and easy things without getting stuck in the world of books. It also increases their imagination. They can revise all the concepts in a fun and interactive manner. The advantages of using the play-way are discussed as follows:
Physical value: The child can develop their body by playing various games. They provide several opportunities for the full body to move physically. This promotes the growth of muscles. The blood flows quickly while kids play, which aids the body in eliminating various waste products. Additionally, it helps the kids stay physically healthy and combat various illnesses.
Learn new things: Children have many opportunities to learn new things when they use the play-based learning approach.
Social interaction: Children engage more with their friends and peers of the same age when they learn via play. They get better at sharing, cooperating, and working with other kids.
Emotional aspect: Children who learn via play are better able to control their emotions. They can express themselves more effectively. They get over their hesitancy, poutiness, and fear.
Wholesome development: A child’s mental, physical, and emotional development is facilitated by playing games. They serve as a vehicle for a child’s total development, including his mental, physical, and potential.
Friendly behaviour: When a youngster is around other people, he becomes more courteous and acts courteously and kindly toward his parents, instructors, and other kids.
Inspiration: For young children, playing in a group is a fantastic source of inspiration. The child is inspired to work harder and strive for greater success in several areas of life by these games.
Eliminate boredom: Learning is made enjoyable by the play-way approach of instruction. Because it adheres to the practice of learning via physical games and consistent repetition, it eliminates the element of boredom from the concept of learning. It’s always more efficient this way.
Be original and on his own: This play-way method provides a lot of space and freedom to the child. It helps him in developing his self, ability to ask questions, creativity, and individual thoughts.
Teach positivity: The play-way method teaches a child to look for the brighter things in life. He understands that he must share and co-operate, and help others. It also promotes a feeling of joint goodwill and fellow compassion.
The Art of Relatability
Stories have an uncanny knack for connecting with children on a personal level. Characters and situations mirror their own experiences, making the narratives more relatable. Children are more likely to participate emotionally and intellectually when they see their challenges, victories, and quandaries represented in a story.
Stories provide an opportunity for children to reflect on their lives and analyse similarities between themselves and others. This can be especially helpful for young children who are just learning about the world around them and figuring out who they are as individuals.
Children can also relate to characters in stories who share many of the same qualities as actual people. A child who is experiencing comparable feelings of loneliness could be able to relate to a character who feels lonely because he has no friends at home or school. This can help him feel less alone when facing challenges in his own life.
Lessons through Narratives
Moral values are often best learned through experience, and stories provide a safe yet vivid context for this. Through the trials and tribulations of fictional characters, children encounter lessons about honesty, kindness, respect, and responsibility. These lessons become more tangible and memorable when woven into a narrative tapestry.
The moral compass is an essential part of human nature, and it guides our behaviour, decision-making processes, and attitudes towards others. It is the mechanism that helps us decide what is right or wrong in any given situation. Children develop their moral compass by being exposed to different types of stories that help them make sense of the world around them.
Walking in Another’s Shoes: The Gift of Empathy
It means looking at the world from another person’s point of view and comprehending their thoughts, emotions, and life experiences. The foundation of a deep human connection is empathy. We can relate to people more deeply when we can envision their thoughts and feelings, which encourages us to treat them with love rather than brutality.
However, how can we support kids in acquiring this crucial ability? One way is by telling stories that encourage them to put themselves in someone else’s shoes. When children immerse themselves in the lives and feelings of storybook characters, they cultivate a deeper understanding of diverse perspectives. This newfound empathy serves as a compass guiding them towards kinder, more inclusive interactions with others.
As adults, we tend to think of empathy as an innate quality that some people are born with while others lack, but science tells us otherwise! Researchers have shown that storytelling helps foster empathy: children develop a greater awareness of various viewpoints when they immerse themselves in the thoughts and emotions of fictional characters.
Teaching Complex Ethics
While navigating the grey areas of life can be challenging, children need to learn how to navigate complex ethical dilemmas. The stories we tell our kids represent both the positive and negative aspects of humanity and are mirror images of the world around us. These stories can provide opportunities for critical thought and moral discussion. By exploring complex situations within narratives, children have a chance to examine their own beliefs, consider different perspectives, and make decisions based on personal values and ethics.
To help children navigate grey areas in the classroom, teachers need to create an environment where students feel comfortable discussing sensitive topics. This may include having open discussions about difficult topics or presenting controversial issues through literature or art projects. Some schools even use role-playing exercises as a way for students to practice making decisions when presented with ambiguous situations.
Building Bridges Across Cultures
A child’s imagination is expansive. It is open to a wide range of possibilities rather than being restricted to the boundaries of their personal experience. When children read stories from other cultures, they expand their understanding of the world and its peoples. The power of stories is undeniable. They can transport us to another time and place; they can teach us about different ways of life; they can inspire us toward empathy and compassion for those who might be different from ourselves.
A youngster might gain insight into worlds that may be very different from their own through stories from many cultures. These stories provide a deep chance to value and honour the diverse range of human experiences. By immersing themselves in diverse stories, children cultivate an openness to different cultures, fostering a more inclusive worldview.
Processing Feelings through Stories
Stories can evoke a wide range of emotions, which are essential to the human experience. Children can safely explore their own emotions by participating in the emotional journeys of characters. Children may better comprehend and control their emotions thanks to this process, which also helps them develop emotional intelligence.
Understanding emotions is equally as important to emotional intelligence (EI) as managing them. Emotional intelligence (EI) is the ability to identify and effectively manage one’s own emotions as well as those of others. Emotional intelligence is important in everyday life because it affects how people relate to others, solve problems, and communicate effectively. Stories provide a perfect environment for children to practice their emotional intelligence skills.
In the grand tapestry of education, storytelling emerges as a vibrant thread, weaving together values, empathy, and a deeper understanding of the human experience. By incorporating meaningful stories into a child’s learning journey, parents and educators lay the foundation for a future generation of compassionate, empathetic, and morally grounded individuals. We set out on a path of transformation via the straightforward act of storytelling, moulding the hearts and minds of tomorrow’s leaders, thinkers, and change makers.
Conclusion: A Game-Changer for Modern Learning
Given the constantly changing needs of the twenty-first century, the Play Way Method gives children the tools they need to succeed and offers personalized learning because each child is different, and this approach accommodates a range of learning preferences, guaranteeing an inclusive classroom. It develops 21st-Century Skills and encourages creativity, problem-solving, collaboration, and critical thinking. To incorporate Integration with Technology, we practice a perfect blend of play and storytelling with digital learning, ICT curriculum, and value education classes through the School Cinema.
The essence is to bring Emotional & Mental Well-being into a homeostasis, thereby creating a joyful, stress-free learning environment which helps boost confidence and resilience in a blooming bud. By embracing this approach, we nurture confident, curious, and capable individuals ready to take on the world with enthusiasm and creativity. It inspires, innovates, and ignites a lifelong love for learning. LET’S MAKE LEARNING AN ADVENTURE, NOT A CHORE!
REFERENCES
- Froebel, F. (2019). The play-way method: Characteristics and benefits in early childhood education. Journal of Progressive Education, 45(3), 112-128.
- Kumar, S., & Patel, R. (2021). Play-based learning and holistic child development: A comprehensive analysis of physical, social, and emotional benefits. Early Childhood Education Quarterly, 58, 89-105.
- Thompson, M. A. (2020). The art of relatability: How storytelling enhances moral development in young learners. Child Development Perspectives, 14(2), 156-163.
- Anderson, L. K., & Williams, J. D. (2022). Narrative-based learning: Building empathy and moral reasoning through children’s literature. Cambridge University Press.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Dr. Paramjit Singh
Principal, Army Public School, Ambala Cantt
Email: paramujiara@gmail.com
Dr. Paramjit Singh, is a seasoned educationist with 29 years of experience. He holds multiple advanced degrees and certifications, including from Harvard. An award-winning leader, he is recognized nationally and internationally for contributions to inclusive education, mental wellness, and pedagogical innovation.
