Image of the child

Being brought up in India, my image of the child was quite different from now. I use to
think that children are suppose to study rather than play. Play was not an important part of our
life. We were taught to always obey the parents, listen to them and parents have to decide in
which school their should go and what should the child be studying (Sorin, 2005, p.1). But when
I came here in Canada and started studying ECE, I realized that academics does not have a very
important role in the early years of the childs life. Instead of it play is a very important part of
the childs life because play helps in the holistic development of the child (Mayes, 2005, class 2).
Through my learning in the ECE course and the experiences I have gained from the placement, I
have learnt that through play child learns a lot of things. Children are competent, powerful,
curious, concrete thinkers and actively constructs knowledge with peers and adults (Martalock,
2012, p.5). According to me children should be allowed to play freely and no restrictions should
be put on them. Educators should facilitate their rather than direct it. Every child is unique,
strong and capable learner and they should be allowed whatever they want to do (Sorin, 2005).
As every child is different, their way of learning and expressing themselves is also different and
every child learns at his/her own pace, so we should give them time and space to develop
themselves. I believe that play helps the child to interact with others, problem solve, physical
development. Children are active learners and they learn by experimenting with the materials
around them and by manipulating them (Martalock, 2012, p.5). Children learn about their
environment and make sense of what is happening around by constantly interacting with the
environment (Sorin, 2005, p.18). Overall, my image of the child has changed and I will always
encourage children to learn through play as it helps in the overall development of the child and
most importantly child learns to interact with others through play.