I have found that parent relates best when I tell them that as we think of children playing we must realize that this is work for them.

I think the idea that teachers try and teach children how to play is absurd. I completely understand that some children benefit from modeling and even simple explanations for what some materials might be used for, but the notion that teachers will talk through each step of an activity is counterintuitive to me.
You said it best when you asked about waiting and allowing the children to explore the materials themselves. If the adults watch the children engage with the materials in a supportive and well-designed environment, the children will teach them about what they know, what they are thinking about, and what they need from the adults.

This week students will be checking in to respond – one place I like to start is in our child development lab- encouraging childcare practitioners to \”play\” with the material as they develop lesson plans and curriculum webs.

Sometimes students are quite uncomfortable with the idea of \”playing\” with the materials to see what happens or to try a variation on a suggested activity – I often wonder in those cases what happens in classrooms
Are children \”told\” what to to at each step when they are engaged in activity in class or as caregivers to we give our children time to play/explore the materials ? Do we take the time to ask questions about what the child is doing? Or do we direct/control every activity/lesson to find \”proof\” to parents administrators etc that \”Work\” is being done in preschool and kindergarten ?

One of the students in Saturday class was able to attend the Dallas session and share what she learned with the class.
We were fascinated to hear that NAEYC now encourages the SMART program
Science Math Art and Technology – perhaps this initiative will be yet another way for givers of care for young children see the value in what we call \”play\”