Nature by Design: Playscape Affordances Support the Use of Executive Function in Preschoolers

Carr, Victoria; Brown, Rhonda Douglas; Schlembach, Sue; Kochanowski, Leslie

doi:10.7721/chilyoutenvi.27.2.0025

Cited by 13 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…Tapparel ( 2015 ) conducted a study over one academic year, at a Centre de Vie Enfantine (Lausanne), on top-down processes in 3 to 4-year-olds during a painting activity with the teacher. Carr et al ( 2017 ) analyse the spontaneous behaviour at school of 3 to 5-year-olds, in playscape environment when they face difficulties, or in interaction with a classmate (see also, Pyle and Danniels 2017 , about play based learning pedagogies for kindergarten teachers, and Kangas et al 2015 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Pragmatic Turn in the Study of Early Executive Functions by Object Use and Gestures. A Case Study from 8 to 17 Months of Age at a Nursery School

Rodríguez

Moreno-Llanos

2020

Integr. psych. behav.

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The two first years of life are critical in the development of Executive Functions (EF). However, very little is known about their early manifestations, how they develop, how they relate to other psychological constructions or the status of other people’s influence in this early development. The study of EFs has been carried out through standardised tasks, but some authors question their ecological validity and suggest an approach involving everyday situations and the challenges that children set for themselves. In this article we first review these issues in relation to the first manifestations of EFs. We secondly present a longitudinal case study at nursery school of a child between the ages of 8 and 17 months, considering the challenges and the means he employed in order to resolve them. We found that, from 8 months of age, the child gave himself challenges in relation to the functional uses of objects and instruments. He regulated his own behavior both through object and instrument uses and private gestures. He also involved the teacher at 17 months. This finding suggests that (1) the material world is particularly important in these early manifestations of EF, (2) teachers’ interventions are essential. Implications of the findings for early years education are discussed.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Pragmatic Turn in the Study of Early Executive Functions by Object Use and Gestures. A Case Study from 8 to 17 Months of Age at a Nursery School

Rodríguez

Moreno-Llanos

2020

Integr. psych. behav.

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“…The early years are the most important brain development period within the human lifespan (Alexandra & Victoria, 2015). Research increasingly suggests there are numerous cognitive benefits for young children engaging in OL experiences during lower primary school, including concentration, divergent thinking, imagination (Bento & Dias, 2017;Mason et al, 2021), language acquisition (Mann et al, 2022b), creativity, memory (Dadvand et al, 2015;Mason et al, 2021), problem solving and executive functioning (Carr et al, 2017). The cognitive development promoted through OL supports the implementation of this pedagogical approach in primary school, particularly for children in lower primary at such a pivotal time for brain development (Dadvand et al, 2015).…”

Section: Cognitive and Academic Benefitsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Outdoor learning across the early years in Australia: Inconsistencies, challenges, and recommendations

Frances,

Quinn,

Elliott

et al. 2024

Aust. Educ. Res.

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In this article, we explore inconsistencies in the implementation of outdoor learning across Australian early years’ education. The benefits of outdoor learning justify regular employment of this pedagogical approach in both early childhood education and primary school settings. Early childhood education services provide daily outdoor learning opportunities as required by Australian national policy documents. However, Australian primary schools are not subject to such requirements and teachers often face challenges regarding outdoor learning, thus regular implementation in primary classes can be a low priority. As children in the year before school and the first year of school have similar learning and developmental needs, we argue that the benefits of outdoor learning should be available to all children across the early years. We also recommend regular outdoor learning in the first year of schooling to promote continuity as children transition from early childhood education to primary schools.

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“…Although rural children usually live in normal houses, not apartments, they have less access to a park's playground equipment than urban children, and spend most of their time free playing in open spaces with natural tools, such as wood, soil, etc. It has been shown that EFs may be developed by playing in natural environments [21].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Relationship between Executive Functions and Gross Motor Skills in Rural Children Aged 8–10 Years

et al. 2022

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Considering that cognitive and motor dimensions of human beings grow together, and that primary school age is one of the most important stages of children’s cognitive and motor development, the aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between executive functions and gross motor skills in rural children aged 8–10 years. This descriptive and correlational research was conducted with 93 Iranian rural primary school children aged 8 to 10 years. A Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF) questionnaire and the Test of Gross Motor Development, second edition (TGMD-2) were used to collect data on executive functions and gross motor skills, respectively. The results showed that most of the correlations between criterion and predictor variables were moderate. In the regression results we observed that among the components of executive functions, inhibition, working memory, planning/organizing, and organization had a significant relationship with gross motor skills, but no relationship was found between other components and motor skills. As a result, it can be said that in predicting cognitive development and specifically mentioned executive functions, gross motor skills are an important and effective factor among rural children and, given the importance of cognitive development and executive functions in childhood, it seems that by helping to develop their gross motor skills, executive functions will also be strengthened. Finally, possible future studies are addressed, which could investigate the effect of different aspects of motor skill classifications on executive functions.

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Nature by Design: Playscape Affordances Support the Use of Executive Function in Preschoolers

Cited by 13 publications

References 16 publications

A Pragmatic Turn in the Study of Early Executive Functions by Object Use and Gestures. A Case Study from 8 to 17 Months of Age at a Nursery School

A Pragmatic Turn in the Study of Early Executive Functions by Object Use and Gestures. A Case Study from 8 to 17 Months of Age at a Nursery School

Outdoor learning across the early years in Australia: Inconsistencies, challenges, and recommendations

The Relationship between Executive Functions and Gross Motor Skills in Rural Children Aged 8–10 Years

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