Social Interaction Through Structured Play Activities and Games in Early Childhood

Abstract

The aim of this chapter is to identify the importance of structured play activities in children's holistic development, particularly in the development of social skills. It consists of two sections: a theoretical and a practical section. The theoretical section focuses on structured physical activities such as integrated and organized/cooperative activities, which can promote communication and students' interpersonal skills. The practical section informs educators on how to establish classroom rules and routines for creating a positive environment, use student-centered teaching styles such as the practice and reciprocal styles, apply teaching models like the Hellison model, and use modified games that foster students' social and life skills. Practical examples are also presented. It is concluded that in physical education classes, children's social and life skills can be developed through structured games and activities.

Efecto de un programa de iniciación a la natación basado en juegos motores acuáticos sobre la autoestima corporal y socio afectiva en niñas y niños de 5 y 6 años de edad

“…The experimental group used motor games in which the children were required to perform tasks designed to encourage the acquisition of aquatic skills in a cooperative way, and this appears to have contributed to their feeling appreciated and integrated in the group, generating positive emotions linked to their social self-esteem. Similar results in terms of positive emotions have been reported in physical education studies using these types of cooperative games (Chatzipanteli & Adamakis, 2022;Gil-Madrona et al, 2022;Zamorano García et al, 2018). In the control group, the swimming teachers likely approached the tasks as individual motor repetitions (Gosálvez & Joven, 2014), which does not encourage cooperation between the children.…”

“…Additionally, as regards methodologies, those that use cooperative motor games foster greater enjoyment, intrinsic motivation, positive emotions and generate better learning outcomes than those based on mere individual motor repetition, given childrens' symbolic and cognitive involvement in the activity (Chatzipanteli & Adamakis, 2022;Gil-Madrona, Carrillo-López, Puebla-Martín, & Morcillo-Martínez, 2022;Simón-Piqueras et al, 2022;Zamorano-García, Gil-Madrona, Prieto-Ayuso, & Zamorano-García, 2018). Cooperative games can be defined as those that demand players act in a group-oriented way, with each participant collaborating with the others to achieve a common goal (Omecaña & Ruiz, 2016).…”