Collaborative Play, using Lego, is an effective form of
therapy for children with a wide range of emotional and behavioural
difficulties including depression, anxiety, aggression and social issues.
Children use play as a form of communication in everyday life. In Collaborative
Play children use play to express themselves. Children enter into a dynamic
relationship with the play facilitator, i.e. the teacher, which enables them to
express, explore and make sense of areas such as turn-taking, sharing and eye
contact.
Many child psychiatrists and psychologists believe that
therapeutic play is an integral way to teach social skills, calm anxiety, and
improve self-esteem in children with ASD/ADHD and related neurobiological
conditions.
Play is a child’s natural way of recovering from daily
emotional upheavals. Many children best express and challenge themselves
through play. Using games and activities to encourage growth and a sense of
wellbeing is the cornerstone of therapeutic play. Learn how you can teach
valuable life skills to children of all ages with these recommended Lego sets
and games.
Course Aims
The purpose of this course is to pique your interest in the
process of setting up a Collaborative Play group in your classroom and/or a
room in the school. On this course you will learn lots of interesting things
about Lego and its therapeutic nature, but you will also specifically learn
about Collaborative Lego set building; Freestyle building; Brick Club Rules;
Brick Club Points; Brick Club Levels and Certificates; and The Role of the
Adult Facilitator, to name but a few. These skills will enable you to set
up your own Lego Club, whether in school or after school and it will give you
the confidence to run the club just the way it should. Throughout the course
there are photos and short video clips from an Irish Primary School which
showcase a very successful Lego therapy club and these will set you on the
right path to happy pupils, happy parents and happy staff
Specific Learning Outcomes
- To improve and sustain teaching and learning through play-based learning
- To ensure teachers understand, appreciate and deploy a ‘Learning through Play’ methodology to classroom activities
- To grow and cement concepts, skills and dispositions through play
- To build key skills and confidence in the use of manipulatives for playful facilitation of curriculum, i.e. SSE and Wellbeing
- To motivate, support and grow teachers to learn, understand and apply new approaches and methods across the broader integrated, skills curriculum
- To provide teachers with the tools and support to confidently innovate and implement new approaches to learning in their classrooms
- To have a positive influence on learner wellbeing achievement by enhancing lifelong learning skills for all learners using the Therapeutic Play principles, practices and pedagogy