The play facilitation framework

Welcome to this small video where we will be talking about learning through play facilitation framework, which is a framework that’s been developed by the LEGO Foundation and contains of a mindset, a design, a practice and a reflection that we believe that all teachers could or should be doing when they want to do learning through play in the classroom. I’m Per from the LEGO Foundation, and I am today joined by Camilla from Vorbasse school and Camilla. Who are you? I’m a teacher at Vorbasse school, as you said, and I’m teaching primary. We are very excited to hear about this learning through play in a classroom. What would that require of you and your colleagues?

First of all, we are preparing the lessons a lot together. We are also working very practical with projects where the children are sharing their knowledge in the product. We are trying to let them experiment. An example of that could be what we do in the science class. My colleague and I, we have made these geek lessons we call them. There are four stations and we want them to learn something about construction. But instead of saying constructions, we are giving it a headline. For example, Bob the Builder, we’re telling him that we are going to help Bob the Builder. He has some problems.

Amazing, I just want to stop you there for a second, Camilla because I’m thinking about this play facilitation framework. And what I hear you talking about is that the mindset of you and your colleagues entering into that space when you are designing it together first of all. So you see yourself as someone who needs to kind of learn and think like the children. And you also see the children as quite competent because you are not just going in and lecturing them. And then I heard about how you were designing and thinking about how you could make these things. That’s really, really inspiring. So this Bob the Builder, that you are doing. How does that look in practice?

How does that look in the classroom? We are making the stations ready. and put it up in the classroom and introducing, like I just said, and we’re taking the children through with explaining for them every task. And it could be that Bob the Builder is going to go over a river, but he has to get his truck with him. And it’s very heavy with a lot of tools. And they have to build a bridge. It could also be that he has to build a tower, but we need to help him. He only has 20 cups and 20 sticks, but we have to get it as high as possible. Or it could be that Bob the Builder loves playing with spinners.

But yeah. Ah these. Yes, spinners. Yeah. But it’s broken. So they have to build a new one for him. Amazing Camilla so I hear we’re thinking about the play facilitation framework is that in that practice part, the children are working with real life problems, or they have a working problem based you’re giving them challenges that they can solve it. And but it’s quite open ended. And they need to figure out how. Are they working together? Or are they working alone or? It’s up to them. So some love to work together with a partner and some love working alone. But it’s it’s a very different role for the teacher. What? Well, how is it different?

If you think of the more traditional way of teaching you are standing and you have all the answers. When we’re working like this with this mindset, it’s the children who have the answers. So your role as a teacher is very changed. Amazing. That’s exactly what we are talking about in the play facilitation framework. Camilla sorry, my eyes keep catching these amazing things that you have on your table. The last part of our framework is about reflecting and evaluating. And these look like student products. Could you say a little bit about how you kind of finalize projects. And what are these? Yes. These are some books that my first grade from last year made.

And it was because we had this project about superheroes. Yeah. And for reflection, they should make this book. I made the the framework and they should go through all the parts that we learned and worked with. What do you know about villains? What do you know about superheroes and what products were you especially proud of and so on. So that’s a reflection or evaluation for the last of the subject. It’s almost like a portfolio. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Exactly. I did. Yes, I did this. Yeah. And when we’re making these geek lessons, we are ending the lesson with the reflection, because the children, they are working where they want to and for how long they want to.

But we are ending the lesson by talking about, OK, what did you learn? What did you experiment with? What did you find out? And they are coming with so many amazing facts. Fantastic. Camilla, I have one final question. What’s in the box? The box that’s filled with mistakes? This is the first I made. So I think we are going to make a bigger one. But, children today, and I think very many adults are very afraid of making mistakes. So we are making a mistake box. Where it says that to learn new things, you have to make mistakes. True. And mistakes are a step for another result. Exactly. I made a mistake. What should I do? Yeah. Then if you make.

Yes. Yes. I love it. Actually, if you make a mistake. Yes. It’s it’s OK to do like this, and put it in this mistake box. Yeah, I love that. Yeah. And it’s working super. We should all have a mistake box. That’s for sure. Yeah. Fantastic. Thank you so much, Camilla. It is so nice to kind of hear how this learning through play framework actually comes to life in a in a classroom, in a school in Vorbasse, Billund where teachers with the right mindset, the right design, the right practice and the right reflection could create learning through play experiences for children in classrooms.

Have you been teaching for many years? I think it’s 15 years.