1. Literacy through Exploration
Play: Not just for the Early Years?
Literacy
Toolkit
HGIOS 4
Where does it link to How Good is Our School?
2.2 – Curriculum
2.3 – Learning, teaching and assessment
2.4 – Personalised support
The notes section in each presentation is primarily for the facilitator, indicating additional requirements or information.
Literacy through Exploration – Play: Not just for the Early Years?
The objective of this PPT is to explore the key principles of play, discussing how these can be adopted and integrated into Literacy within the classroom.
This PPT will address the following Quality Indicators from HGIOS 4:
QI: 2.2 – Curriculum – Themes:
Rationale and design
Development of the curriculum
Skills for learning, life and work
QI: 2.3 – Learning, teaching and assessment – Themes:
Learning and engagement
Quality of teaching
Planning, tracking and monitoring
QI: 2.4 – Personalised support – Themes:
Universal support
Removal of potential barriers to learning

2. Literacy through Exploration
Play: Not just for the Early Years?
Literacy
Toolkit
Agenda
Activity 1 – Introduction / Starter Activity (5 mins)
Activity 2 – How’s it going / feedback (10-20 mins)
Activity 3 – New Learning (25-40 mins)
Activity 4 – Personal Action Planning (10 mins)
Activity 5 – Summary of Learning (5 mins)
This agenda is fixed and is the same for every presentation in the toolkit.

3. Literacy through Exploration
Play: Not just for the Early Years?
Literacy
Toolkit
Activity 1: Voice on the table
In a maximum of 45 seconds, share a game which you enjoy playing, as well as the aspects of literacy that game encompasses.
To start the session choose an activity which is non-judgemental and everyone can contribute.
“Think of something that happened in a lesson that made you smile. You have 30 seconds per teacher to tell the group what it is. No teacher can ‘pass”
The role of the teachers when it is not their turn is active listening
You may use a stopwatch
Choose respondents to share their opinion -everyone must be involved in this activity
Max 5 Minutes for this activity

4. Literacy through Exploration
Play: Not just for the Early Years?
Literacy
Toolkit
Minishant – Learning through play
This video highlights the exploration ethos which Minishant Primary School has embedded to encourage learners to investigate solutions to problems.
'Learning through play'
The following video is from the Education Scotland website and can be accessed on
The video shows how Minishant Primary School, South Ayrshire, adopts a ‘Learning through Play’ ethos within their school, allowing learners to explore.
The question ‘Where are the literacy based learning experiences within this activity?’ can then be posed by the facilitator, and discussed as the group.
5 minutes

5. Literacy through Exploration
Play: Not just for the Early Years?
Literacy
Toolkit
“Play is the highest level of development. It is spontaneous expression of thought and feeling. Play is never trivial it is serious and clearly significant.”
Froebel (1856)
“Play can enable students to explore new things, to make and learn from mistakes, and to expand their understanding.”
Gershon (2013) : Play should be part of all lessons
What do we mean by ‘play within literacy’?
The first quote highlights that play is not a new concept within the classroom, but something we have recognised in history as being a key activity which enhances development. The second quote comes from a TES article entitled ‘Play should be part of all lessons’ – this can be accessed by clicking the blue link.
In pairs/ as a group, discuss:
What do we mean by ‘play within literacy’?
Facilitator could provide examples, such as:
Physical play experiences – indoors or outdoors
Role play activities – both indoors and outdoors
Games based learning – including ICT
Experimenting with words and letters
Use of ‘What if’ questioning
5 -10 minutes

6. Literacy through Exploration
Play: Not just for the Early Years?
Literacy
Toolkit
Activity 2: How’s it going?
• Develops the fundamental skills of literacy, numeracy and oral communication
• Provides rich and varied contexts for developing skills such as observing, organising, recording, interpreting and predicting
• Promotes positive attitudes to school and to learning
• Provides opportunities to learn in a practical way
• Provides opportunities for developing movement and manipulative skills
• Develops natural curiosity and stimulates imagination
• Provides opportunities for exploration, investigation, problem solving and decision-making
• Provides opportunities to develop knowledge, understanding and skills through a range of contexts spanning all subjects in the curriculum
Northern Ireland Curriculum, Key Stages 1 and 2
In your view, does play provide the opportunities above?
Following on from the previous exercise – the facilitator should share this quote from the Northern Ireland Curriculum.
The following question should be asked:
In your view, does play provide the opportunities above?
Staff should be given 2 minutes to discuss their thoughts with a partner; these should then be shared amongst the group.
The facilitator should ask the question : ‘Are there any suprises?’ – either allow partner discussion, or open floor discussion.
minutes

7. Literacy through Exploration
Play: Not just for the Early Years?
Literacy
Toolkit
Activity 3: New Learning
Independently, using a previous plan, highlight where literacy through play has been an explicit focus.
Using a different colour, now highlight where any relevant missed opportunities where literacy through play would have improved the learning experience.
Are we missing an opportunity?
Staff to analyse their own planning – analysing the literacy through play experiences which they have planned for discretely, also indicating areas where literacy through play could have been developed. The facilitator, should in advance either ask staff to bring a photocopy of their short-term planner, or provide copies of short-term planning documents which they have sourced themselves.
Staff to share their responses to the activity – what can they see from the exercise?
Are we missing an opportunity?
If this is the first time you meet, the purpose of this activity is for
staff to share experiences in relation to the issue.
If staff have met before and completed Personal Action Plans –
this should be referred to now.
15 minutes

8. Literacy through Exploration
Play: Not just for the Early Years?
Literacy
Toolkit
Activity 4: Personal Action Planning
Over the coming weeks, look for opportunities to prioritise purposeful play within literacy.
Choose an element that you are going to explore and evaluate.
Bring back your findings to the next session
Using the Personal Action plan sheet each teacher chooses one or two elements s/he is going to explore and use during the next month. This may involve doing more of some things and less of others and teachers may need pushing on this.
Activity 4: Personal Action Planning
Have copies of My Personal Action Plan ready to distribute
Pair-share: two minutes sharing your
plan with your partner then swap.
Randomly choose two or three
teachers to share with the group
what their partner is planning
5 – 10 minutes

9. Literacy through Exploration
Play: Not just for the Early Years?
Literacy
Toolkit
Activity 5: Summary of Learning
Write your name on the card or post-it and how you now feel about How do you feel, after taking part in this session, about using play with your learners to support literacy?
Leave your card or post-it on your way out.
EXIT CARDS
Distribute exit cards( pieces of card or post its) and ask each member to write their name on the card and one thing that they learned in the workshop on the card.
Collect in the exit cards.
Read through the cards so that you can feedback to the group at the start of the next workshop.

10. Literacy through Exploration
Play: Not just for the Early Years?
Literacy
Toolkit
FOLLOW UP LINKS:
NI Curriculum - Learning Through Play (2008)
Word Study - Play with Words
FOLLOW UP LINKS
The facilitator should refer participants to the follow up links which can be accessed independently for further information.
Education Scotland - Active Learning