Abstract
Young children’s play has been the object of hundreds of educational and psychological studies over the last half-century, an interest predominantly owed to two theories about its importance for learning: those of Jean Piaget (1896–1980) and Lev Semenovich Vygotsky (1896–1934) (Siraj-Blatchford et al., in Education and Child Psychology, 26(2):77–89, 2002; Thomas et al., in Australasian Journal of Early Childhood 36(4):69–75, 2011). While countless papers have examined the differences in the theories, none have sought to examine each in relation to the profile of the recently proliferating high-quality, experimental, and longitudinal research on the topic, including adult-led play as well as child-initiated, child-led play. To do so, we examine the theories in detail and how they have been applied in early childhood education and care (ECEC) settings and curricula. From this analysis, we find limited evidence for the efficacy of play to lead to academic learning outcomes, but higher quality evidence mounting that “soft skills,” such as social, emotional, and intrapersonal abilities, are associated with free play in homes and ECEC settings. In light of Vygotsky’s emphasis on the role of the more knowledgeable other in learning through play, we also examine the growing evidence that adult-led play can achieve “hard” skills such as reading and mathematical skills. We examine this profile of evidence in relation to the two theories and suggest that historical assumptions about what play is, informed strongly by Piaget’s theory, can be reconfigured to include the adults and peers in play research.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Avdulova, T. P. (2018). Psihologiya igry: uchebnik dlya akademicheskogo bakalavriata [The play psychology: A textbook for academic undergraduate studies] (Trans. N. E. Veraksa) Moscow: Urajt.
Barker, J. E., Semenov, A. D., Michaelson, L., Provan, L. S., Snyder, H. R., & Munakata, Y. (2014). Less-structured time in children’s daily lives predicts self-directed executive functioning. Frontiers in Psychology, 5.https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00593
Berk, L. E., & Meyers, A. B. (2013). The role of make-believe play in the development of executive function: Status of research and future directions. American Journal of Play, 6(1), 98–110. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1016170.pdf
Birns, B., & Golden, M. (1974). The implications of Piaget’s theories for contemporary infancy research and education. In M. Schwebel & J. Raph (Eds.), Piaget in the classroom (pp. 114–131). Routledge & Kegan Paul.
Blankson, A. N., Weaver, J. M., Leerkes, E. M., O’Brien, M., Calkins, S. D., & Marcovitch, S. (2017). Cognitive and emotional processes as predictors of a successful transition into school. Early Education and Development, 28(1), 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1080/10409289.2016.1183434
Bodrova, E. V., & Leong, D. J. (2001). Tools of the mind: A case study of implementing the Vygotskian approach in American early childhood and primary classrooms. Innodata monographs 7. International Bureau of Education, P. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ed455014
Bodrova, E. V. (2008). Make-believe play versus academic skills: A Vygotskian approach to today’s dilemma of early childhood education. European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, 16(3), 357–369. https://doi.org/10.1080/13502930802291777
Bower, C., Odean, R., Verdine, B. N., Medford, J. R., Marzouk, M., Golinkoff, R. M., & Hirsh-Pasek, K. (2020). Associations of 3-year-olds’ block-building complexity with Later spatial and mathematical skills. Journal of Cognition and Development, 21(3), 383–405. https://doi.org/10.1080/15248372.2020.1741363
Braza, F., Braza, P., Carreras, R. M., Munoz, J. M., Sanchez-Martin, J. R., Azurmendi, A., Sorozabal, A., Garcia, A., & Cardas, J. (2007). Behavioral profiles of different types of 904 A. IvrendiSocial status in preschool children: An observational approach. Social Behavior and Personality: An International Journal, 35(2), 195–212. https://doi.org/10.2224/sbp.2007.35.2.195
Breathnach, H., Danby, S., & O’Gorman, L. (2017). ‘Are you working or playing?’ Investigating young children’s perspectives of classroom activities. International Journal of Early Years Education, 25(4), 439–454. https://doi.org/10.1080/09669760.2017.1316241
Bredekamp, S. (1987). Developmentally appropriate practice in early childhood education programs: Serving children from birth through age 8. National Association for the Education of Young Children.
Bredekamp, S., Copple, C., & National Association for the Education of Young Children (Eds.). (1997). Developmentally appropriate practice in early childhood programs (Rev. ed.). National Association for the Education of Young Children.
Burman, E. (1994). Deconstructing developmental psychology (1st ed.). Routledge.
Burman, E. (2008). Developments: Child, image, nation. Taylor & Francis. https://public.ebookcentral.proquest.com/choice/publicfullrecord.aspx?p=327303
Butler, A. L., Gotts, E. E., & Quisenberry, N. L. (1978). Play as development. Merrill.
Callaghan, M. N., & Reich, S. M. (2018, August 3). Are educational preschool apps designed to teach? An analysis of the app market. Learning, Media and Technology, 43(3), 280–293. https://doi.org/10.1080/17439884.2018.1498355
Cannella, G. S. (1997). Deconstructing early childhood education: Social justice and revolution. Peter Lang.
Carlson, S. M., White, R. E., & Davis-Unger, A. C. (2014). Evidence for a relation between executive function and pretense representation in preschool children. Cognitive Development, 29, 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cogdev.2013.09.001
Chambers, B., Cheung, A. C. K., & Slavin, R. E. (2016). Literacy and language outcomes of comprehensive and developmental-constructivist approaches to early childhood education: A systematic review. Educational Research Review, 18, 88–111. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2016.03.003
Colliver, Y., & Veraksa, N. E. (2019). The aim of the game: A pedagogical tool to support young children’s learning through play. Learning, Culture and Social Interaction, 21, 296–310. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lcsi.2019.03.001
Colliver, Y. (2019). Intentional or incidental? Learning through play according to Australian educators’ perspectives. Early Years: An International Research Journal. https://doi.org/10.1080/09575146.2019.1661976
Colliver, Y., Brown, J., & Harrison, L. (2022). Toddlers’ and preschoolers’ free play predicts their self-regulation two years later: Longitudinal evidence from a representative Australian sample. Early Childhood Research Quarterly.
Colliver, Y., & Doel-Mackaway, H. (2021). Article 31, 31 years on: Choice and autonomy as a framework for implementing children’s right to play in early childhood services. Human Rights Law Review. https://doi.org/10.1093/hrlr/ngab011
Colliver, Y., Hatzigianni, M., & Davies, B. (2020). Why can’t I find quality apps for my child? A model to understand all stakeholders’ perspectives on quality learning through digital play. Early Child Development and Care, 190(16), 2612–2626. https://doi.org/10.1080/03004430.2019.1596901
Colwell, M. J., & Lindsey, E. W. (2005). Preschool children’s pretend and physical play and sex of play partner: Connections to peer competence. Sex Roles, 52(7), 497–509. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-005-3716-8
Copple, C., Bredekamp, S., & National Association for the Education of Young Children (Eds.). (2009). Developmentally appropriate practice in early childhood programs serving children from birth through age 8 (3rd ed.). National Association for the Education of Young Children.
Cullen, J. (1999). Children’s knowledge, teachers’ knowledge: Implications for early childhood teacher education. Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 24(2), 2. https://doi.org/10.14221/ajte.1999v24n2.2
DeVries, R. (2000). Vygotsky, Piaget, and education: A reciprocal assimilation of theories and educational practices. New Ideas in Psychology, 18(2–3), 187–213. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0732-118X(00)00008-8
Dickinson, D. K. (2002). Shifting images of developmentally appropriate practice as seen through different lenses. Educational Researcher, 31(1), 26–32. https://doi.org/10.3102/0013189X031001026
Dickinson, D. K., Collins, M. F., Nesbitt, K., Toub, T. S., Hassinger-Das, B., Hadley, E. B., Hirsh-Pasek, K., & Golinkoff, R. M. (2019). Effects of teacher-delivered book reading and play on vocabulary learning and self-regulation among low-income preschool children. Journal of Cognition and Development, 20(2), 136–164. https://doi.org/10.1080/15248372.2018.1483373
Fantuzzo, J., Coolahan, K. C., Mendez, J. L., McDermott, P. A., & Sutton-Smith, B. (1998). Contextually-relevant validation of peer play constructs with African American head start children: Penn interactive peer play scale. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 13(3), 411–431. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0885-2006(99)80048-9
Eason, S. H., & Ramani, G. B. (2020). Parent-Child math talk about fractions during formal learning and guided play activities. Child Development, 91(2), 546–562. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.13199
Ebbeck, M. (1996). Children constructing their own knowledge. International Journal of Early Years Education, 4(2), 5–27. https://doi.org/10.1080/0966976960040202
Edwards, S., & Cutter-Mackenzie, A. (2011). Environmentalising early childhood education curriculum through pedagogies of play. Australasian Journal of Early Childhood, 36(1), 51–59. https://doi.org/10.1177/183693911103600109
Epstein, A. S. (2007). The intentional teacher. National Association for the Education of Young Children.
Fein, G. G. (1978). Play and the Acquisition of Symbols [PhD Thesis]. National Institute of Education. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED152431.pdf
Fung, W., & Cheng, R. W. (2017). Effect of school pretend play on preschoolers’ social competence in peer interactions: Gender as a potential moderator. Early Childhood Education Journal, 45(1), 35–42. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-015-0760-z
Galyer, K. T., & Evans, I. M. (2001). Pretend play and the development of emotion regulation in preschool children. Early Child Development and Care, 166(1), 93–108. https://doi.org/10.1080/0300443011660108
Garwood, S. G. (1982). Piaget and play: Translating theory into practice. Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, 2(3), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1177/027112148200200305
Gaskins, S., & Göncü, A. (1988). Children’s play as representation and imagination: The case of Piaget and Vygotsky. The Quarterly Newsletter of the Laboratory of Comparative Human Cognition, 10(4), 104–107. http://home.uchicago.edu/~johnlucy/papersmaterials/1988%20vy&piaget-oc88v10n4-1.pdf
Gilpin, A. T., Brown, M. M., & Pierucci, J. M. (2015). Relations between fantasy orientation and emotion regulation in preschool. Early Education and Development, 26(7), 920–932. https://doi.org/10.1080/10409289.2015.1000716
Gibbons, A. (2007). The politics of processes and products in education: An early childhood metanarrative crisis? Educational Philosophy and Theory, 39(3), 300–311. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-5812.2007.00323.x
Glassman, M. (1995). The difference between Piaget and Vygotsky: A response to Duncan. Developmental Review, 15(4), 473–482. https://doi.org/10.1006/drev.1995.1020
Goffin, S. G., & Wilson, C. (2001). Curriculum models and early childhood education: Appraising the relationship (2nd ed.). Prentice Hall.
Goldstein, T. R., & Lerner, M. D. (2018). Dramatic pretend play games uniquely improve emotional control in young children. Developmental Science, 21(4), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1111/desc.12603
Goodley, D., & Runswick-Cole, K. (2010). Emancipating play: Dis/abled children, development and deconstruction. Disability & Society, 25(4), 499–512. https://doi.org/10.1080/09687591003755914
Guldberg, H. (2009). Reclaiming childhood: Freedom and play in an age of fear. Routledge.
Hanline, M. F., Milton, S., & Phelps, P. C. (2008). A longitudinal study exploring the relationship of representational levels of three aspects of preschool sociodramatic play and early academic skills. Journal of Research in Childhood Education, 23(1), 19–28. https://doi.org/10.1080/02568540809594643
Hirsh-Pasek, K., Golinkoff, R., Berk, L., & Singer, D. G. (2009). A mandate for playful learning in preschool: Presenting the evidence. Oxford University Press.
Hoffmann, J. D., & Russ, S. W. (2016). Fostering pretend play skills and creativity in elementary school girls: A group play intervention. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 10(1), 114–125. https://doi.org/10.1037/aca0000039
Ivrendi, A. (2016). Choice-driven peer play, self-regulation and number sense. European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, 24(6), 895–906. https://doi.org/10.1080/1350293X.2016.1239325
Johnson, J. E., Christie, J. F., & Wardle, F. (2004). Play, Development and early education. Pearson/A and B.
Karpov, Y. V. (2005). The Neo-Vygotskian approach to child development. Cambridge University Press.
Kamii, C. (1974). Pedagogical principles derived form Piaget’s theory: Relevance for educational practice. In M. Schwebel & J. Raph (Eds.), Piaget in the classroom (pp. 199–215). Routledge and Kegan Paul.
Kangas, J., Ojala, M., & Venninen, T. (2015). Children’s self-regulation in the context of participatory pedagogy in early childhood education. Early Education and Development, 26(5–6), 847–870. https://doi.org/10.1080/10409289.2015.1039434
Kavanaugh, R. D. (2012). Origins and consequences of social pretend play. The Oxford Handbook of the Development of Play, May 2018, 1–23. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780195393002.013.0022
Kelly, R., Hammond, S., Dissanayake, C., & Ihsen, E. (2011). The relationship between symbolic play and executive function in young children. Australasian Journal of Early Childhood, 36(2), 21–27. https://search.informit.org/doi/abs/10.3316/ielapa.052689338142076
Korotkova, N. A. (1985). Sovremennye issledovaniya detskoj igry [Contemporary research on children’s play]. Voprosy psihologii, 2, 163–169. http://www.voppsy.ru/issues/1985/852/852163.htm
Kravtsov, G. G., & Kravtsova, E. E. (2018). The ‘Golden Key’ program and its cultural-historical basis. In M. Fleer & B. van Oers (Eds.), International handbook of early childhood education (pp. 1023–1039). Springer Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-0927-7_52
Krieg, S. (2011). The Australian early years learning framework: Learning what? Contemporary Issues in Early Childhood, 12(1), 46–55. https://doi.org/10.2304/ciec.2011.12.1.46
Lan, X., Legare, C. H., Ponitz, C. C., Li, S., & Morrison, F. J. (2011). Investigating the links between the subcomponents of executive function and academic achievement: A cross-cultural analysis of Chinese and American preschoolers. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 108(3), 677–692. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jecp.2010.11.001
Lee, K., & Johnson, A. S. (2007). Child development in cultural contexts: Implications of cultural psychology for early childhood teacher education. Early Childhood Education Journal, 35, 233–243. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-007-0202-7
Lerkkanen, M.-K., Kiuru, N., Pakarinen, E., Poikkeus, A.-M., Rasku-Puttonen, H., Siekkinen, M., & Nurmi, J.-E. (2016). Child-centered versus teacher-directed teaching practices: Associations with the development of academic skills in the first grade at school. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 36, 145–156. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecresq.2015.12.023
Lewis, V., & Boucher, J. (1997). The test of pretend play. The Psychological Corporation.
Lillard, A. S., Lerner, M. D., Hopkins, E. J., Dore, R. A., Smith, E. D., & Palmquist, C. M. (2013). The impact of pretend play on children’s development: A review of the evidence. Psychological Bulletin, 139(1), 1–34. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0029321
Lindqvist, G. (2001). When small children play: How adults dramatise and children create meaning. Early Years, 21(1), 7–14. https://doi.org/10.1080/09575140123593
Lindsey, E. W., & Colwell, M. J. (2013). Pretend and physical play: Links to preschoolers’ affective social competence. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 59(3), 330–360. https://doi.org/10.13110/merrpalmquar1982.59.3.0330
McClelland, M. M., Cameron, C. E., Connor, C. M., Farris, C. L., Jewkes, A. M., & Morrison, F. J. (2007). Links between behavioral regulation and preschoolers’ literacy, vocabulary, and math skills. Developmental Psychology, 43(4), 947–959. https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.43.4.947
Montie, J. E., Xiang, Z., & Schweinhart, L. J. (2006). Preschool experience in 10 countries: Cognitive and language performance at age 7. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 21(3), 313–331. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecresq.2006.07.007
Mottweiler, C. M., & Taylor, M. (2014). Elaborated role play and creativity in preschool age children. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 8(3), 277–286. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0036083
Murray, F. B. (1979). The generation of educational practice from developmental theory. Educational Psychologist, 14, 30–43. https://doi.org/10.1080/00461527909529205
Nicolich, L. M. (1977). Beyond sensorimotor intelligence: Assessment of symbolic-maturity through analysis of pretend play. Merrill- Palmer Quarterly, 23, 89–99.
Nicolopoulou, A. (1993). Play, cognitive development, and the social world: Piaget, Vygotsky, and beyond. Human Development, 36(1), 1–23. https://doi.org/10.1159/000277285
O’Gorman, L., & Ailwood, J. (2012). “They get fed up with playing”: Parents’ views on play–based learning in the preparatory year. Contemporary Issues in Early Childhood, 13(4), 266–275. https://doi.org/10.2304/ciec.2003.4.3.5
Piaget, J. (1945). Play, Dreams, and Imitation in Childhood. Norton.
Piaget, J. (1948). The moral judgment of the child. Free Press.
Piaget, J. (1962). Play, dreams and imitation in childhood. Norton.
Piaget, J. (1964). Part I: Cognitive development in children—Piaget development and learning. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 2, 176–186. https://doi.org/10.1002/tea.3660020306
Pierucci, J. M., O’Brien, C. T., McInnis, M. A., Gilpin, A. T., & Barber, A. B. (2013). Fantasy orientation constructs and related executive function development in preschool: Developmental benefits to executive functions by being a fantasy-oriented child. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 38(1), 62–69. https://doi.org/10.1177/0165025413508512
Pyle, A., & Bigelow, A. (2015). Play in kindergarten: An interview and observational study in three canadian classrooms. Early Childhood Education Journal, 43(5), 385–393. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-014-0666-1
Pyle, A., & Danniels, E. (2017). A continuum of play-based learning: The role of the teacher in play-based pedagogy and the fear of hijacking play. Early Education and Development, 28(3), 274–289. https://doi.org/10.1080/10409289.2016.1220771
Pyle, A., Pyle, M. A., Prioletta, J., & Alaca, B. (2021). Portrayals of play-based learning. American Journal of Play, 13(1), 53–86. https://www.journalofplay.org/sites/www.journalofplay.org/files/pdf-articles/13-1-Article-4-Portrayals-of-Play-Based-Learning.pdf
Qu, L., Shen, P., Chee, Y. Y., & Chen, L. (2015). Teachers’ Theory-of-mind coaching and children’s executive function predict the training effect of sociodramatic play on children’s Theory of Mind. Social Development, 24(4), 716–733. https://doi.org/10.1111/sode.12116
Quiñones, G., Ridgeway, A., & Li, L. (2020). Holding hands: Toddler’s imaginary peer play. In A. Ridgeway, G. Quiñones, & L. Li (Eds.), Peer play relationships: International early childhood research perspectives (pp. 77–92). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-42331-5_6
Ramani, G. B., & Scalise, N. R. (2020). It’s more than just fun and games: Play-based mathematics activities for Head Start families. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 50, 78–89. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecresq.2018.07.011
Ranz-Smith, D. J. (2007). Teacher perception of play: In leaving no child behind are teachers leaving childhood behind? Early Education & Development, 18(2), 271–303. https://doi.org/10.1080/10409280701280425
Russ, S. W., Robins, A. L., & Christiano, B. A. (1999). Pretend play: Longitudinal prediction of creativity and affect in fantasy in children. Creativity Research Journal, 12(2), 129–139. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15326934crj1202_5
Ryan, S., & Goffin, S. G. (2008). Missing in action: Teaching in early care and education. Early Education & Development, 19(3), 385–395. https://doi.org/10.1080/10409280802068688
Sanders, K., & Farago, F. (2017). Developmentally appropriate practice in the twenty-first century. In M. Fleer & B. Van Oers (Eds.), International handbook of early childhood education (pp. 1379–1400). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-0927-7_71
Siraj-Blatchford, I. (2009). Conceptualising progression in the pedagogy of play and sustained shared thinking in early childhood education: A Vygotskian perspective. Education and Child Psychology, 26(2), 77–89. http://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/10006091/1/Siraj-Blatchford2009Conceptualising77.pdf
Siraj-Blatchford, I., Sylva, K., Muttock, S., Gilden, R., & Bell, D. (2002). Researching effective pedagogy in the early years (Research report RR356). Institute of Education, University of London.
Slot, P., Cadima, J., Salminen, J., Pastori, G., & Lerkkanen, M.-K. (2016). Multiple case study in seven European countries regarding culture-sensitive classroom quality assessment. EU CARE project. Urn:Nbn:Nl:Ui:10-1874-342309
Slot, P., Mulder, H., Verhagen, J., & Leseman, P. P. M. (2017). Preschoolers’ cognitive and emotional self-regulation in pretend play: Relations with executive functions and quality of play. Infant and Child Development, 26(6), e2038. https://doi.org/10.1002/icd.2038
Smith, P. K. (1988). Children’s play nad its role in early development: A re–evaluation of the ‘play ethos’. In A. D. Pellegrini (Ed.), Psychological bases for early education (pp. 207–226). Wiley.
Spodek, B., & Saracho, O. N. (1999). Issues in early childhood curriculum. Yearbook in Early Childhood Education (Vol. 2). Educators International Press.
Sukhikh, V. L., Veresov N. N., & Veraksa N. E. (2021). Role-play, dramatic Perezhivanie and executive functions’ development in early childhood. Submitted for publication.
Timmons, K., Pelletier, J., & Corter, C. (2016). Understanding children’s self-regulation within different classroom contexts. Early Child Development and Care, 186(2), 249–267. https://doi.org/10.1080/03004430.2015.1027699
Thibodeau, R. B., Gilpin, A. T., Brown, M. M., & Meyer, B. A. (2016). The effects of fantastical pretend-play on the development of executive functions: An intervention study. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 145, 120–138. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jecp.2016.01.001
Thibodeau-Nielsen, R. B., & Gilpin, A. T. (2020). The role of emotion regulation in the relationship between pretense and executive function in early childhood: For whom is the relationship strongest? Infant and Child Development, e2193. https://doi.org/10.1002/icd.2193
Thibodeau-Nielsen, R. B., Gilpin, A. T., Nancarrow, A. F., Pierucci, J. M., & Brown, M. M. (2020). Fantastical pretense’s effects on executive function in a diverse sample of preschoolers. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 68, 101137. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appdev.2020.101137
Thomson, D., Casey, B. M., Lombardi, C. M., & Nguyen, H. N. (2020). Quality of fathers’ spatial concept support during block building predicts their daughters’ early math skills—But not their sons’. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 50, 51–64. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecresq.2018.07.008
Thomas, L., Warren, E., & deVries, E. (2011). Play-based learning and intentional teaching in early childhood contexts. Australasian Journal of Early Childhood, 36(4), 69–75. https://doi.org/10.1177/183693911103600410
Trawick-Smith, J. (1989). Play is not learning: A critical review of the literature. Child & Youth Care Quarterly, 18(3), 161–170. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01085654
UN. (1989). Convention on the rights of the child. http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/3ae6b38f0.html
Van Oers, B. (1998). The fallacy of detextualization. Mind, Culture, and Activity, 2(2), 135–142. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327884mca0502_7
Van Oers, B. (2013). Is it play? Towards a reconceptualisation of role play from an activity theory perspective. European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, 21(2), 185–198. https://doi.org/10.1080/1350293X.2013.789199
Veraksa, N. E. (2015). Representation of objective situations in preschool children. Cultural-Historical Psychology, 11(3), 110–119. https://doi.org/10.17759/chp.2015110310
Veraksa, A., Bukhalenkova, D., & Yakupova, V. (2018). Development of executive functions through play activities: A theoretical overview. Russian Psychological Journal, 15(4), 97–112. https://doi.org/10.21702/rpj.2018.4.5
Veraksa, N. E., & Dolya, G. N. (2018). The key to learning curriculum. In M. Fleer & B. van Oers (Eds.), International handbook of early childhood education (pp. 1059–1073). Springer Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-0927-7_54
Veraksa, A. N., Gavrilova, M. N., Bukhalenkova, D. A., Olga, A. V., Veraksa, N. E., & Colliver, Y. (2019). Does Batman™ affect EF because he is benevolent or skilful? The effect of different pretend roles on pre-schoolers’ executive functions. Early Child Development and Care. https://doi.org/10.1080/03004430.2019.1658091
Veraksa, N. E., Veresov, N. N., Veraksa, A. N., & Sukhikh, V. L. (2020). Modern problems of children’s play: Cultural-historical context. Cultural-Historical Psychology, 16(3), 60–70. https://doi.org/10.17759/chp.2020160307
Vianna, E., & Stetsenko, A. (2006). Embracing history through transforming it: Contrasting Piagetian versus Vygotskian (activity) theories of learning and development to expand constructivism within a dialectical view of history. Theory & Psychology, 16(1), 81–108. https://doi.org/10.1177/0959354306060108
Vieillevoye, S., & Nader-Grosbois, N. (2008). Self-regulation during pretend play in children with intellectual disability and in normally developing children. Research in Developmental Disabilities, 29(3), 256–272. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ridd.2007.05.003
Vygotsky, L. S. (1997). The collected works of L. S. Vygotsky (Vol. 3). Plenum Press.
Vygotsky, L. S. (1983). The collected works of L.S. Vygotsky (Vol. 4. Child Psychology). Pedagogika.
Vygotsky, L. S. (2004). Psihologiya razvitiya rebenka (T. 6). Smysl: Eksmo.
Vygotsky, L. S. (2016). Play and its role in the mental development of the child (with Introduction and Afterword by N. Veresov and M. Barrs, Trans.). International Research in Early Childhood Education, 7(2), 3–25.
Wallace, C. E., & Russ, S. W. (2015). Pretend play, divergent thinking, and math achievement in girls: A longitudinal study. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 9(3), 296–305. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0039006
Walker, S., Fleer, M., Veresov, N., & Duhn, I. (2020). Enhancing executive function through imaginary play: A promising new practice principle. Australasian Journal of Early Childhood, 45(2), 114–126. https://doi.org/10.1177/1836939120918502
Walkerdine, V. (1984). SomeDay my prince will come: Young girls and the preparation for adolescent sexuality. In A. McRobbie & M. Nava (Eds.), Gender and generation. Youth Questions. Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-17661-8_7
Walsh, D. J. (1991). Extending the discourse on developmental appropriateness: A developmental perspective. Early Education & Development, 2(2), 109–119. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15566935eed0202_3
Walsh, G., Sproule, L., McGuinness, C., Trew, K., & Ingram, G. (2010). Developmentally appropriate practice and play-based pedagogy in early year’s education: A literature review of research and practice school of psychology. Queen’s University Belfast Stranmillis University College.
Weber, K., Dawkins, P., & Medina-Ramos, J. P. (2020). The relationship between mathematical practice and mathematics pedagogy in mathematics education research. ZDM, 52, 1063–1074. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11858-020-01173-7
Weisberg, D. S., Hirsh-Pasek, K., & Golinkoff, R. M. (2013). Guided play: Where curricular goals meet a playful pedagogy: Guided play. Mind, Brain, and Education, 7(2), 104–112. https://doi.org/10.1111/mbe.12015
Weisberg, D. S., Zosh, J. M., Hirsh-Pasek, K., & Golinkoff, R. M. (2013). Talking it up: Play, language development, and the role of adult support. American Journal of Play, 6(1), 39–54.
White, R. E., & Carlson, S. M. (2016). What would Batman do? Self-distancing improves executive function in young children. Developmental Science, 19(3), 419–426. https://doi.org/10.1111/desc.12314
White, R. E., & Carlson, S. M. (2021). Pretending with realistic and fantastical stories facilitates executive function in 3-year-old children. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 207, 105090. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jecp.2021.105090
Winther-Lindqvist, D. A. (2021). Caring well for children in ECEC from a wholeness approach—The role of moral imagination. Learning, Culture and Social Interaction, 30, 100452. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lcsi.2020.100452
Wood, R., & Paolo, E. D. (2007). New Models for Old Questions: Evolutionary Robotics and the ‘A Not B’ Error. In F. Almeida e Costa, L. M. Rocha, E. Costa, I. Harvey, & A. Coutinho (Eds.), Advances in artificial life. ECAL 2007. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol. 4648. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-74913-4_114
Zosh, J. M., Hirsh-Pasek, K., Hopkins, E. J., Jensen, H., Liu, C., Neale, D., Solis, S. L., & Whitebread, D. (2018). Accessing the inaccessible: Redefining play as a spectrum. Frontiers in Psychology, 9, 1124. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.01124
Acknowledgements
The work was supported by the RSF grant #20-18-00423.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2022 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Veraksa, N., Colliver, Y., Sukhikh, V. (2022). Piaget and Vygotsky’s Play Theories: The Profile of Twenty-First-Century Evidence. In: Veraksa, N., Pramling Samuelsson, I. (eds) Piaget and Vygotsky in XXI century. Early Childhood Research and Education: An Inter-theoretical Focus, vol 4. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-05747-2_10
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-05747-2_10
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-031-05746-5
Online ISBN: 978-3-031-05747-2
eBook Packages: EducationEducation (R0)