Children's Play and Learning: Perspectives and Policy Implications

The intention of this book is to inform policy-makers, decision-makers, teacher educators, teachers and researchers about the importance of dramatic, social and emotional development of young children (aged 3-8 years). From varying professional perspectives, each of the authors, including David Elkind, Elliot Eisner, Patricia Monighan-Nourot, Sharon Kagan, Barbara Bowman, James E.Johnson and Doris Pronin Fromberg, has written a chapter which elucidates one or more of the following: an analysis of the reasons that dramatic and sociodramatic play have not been included in the curricula for all children in preschool and kindergarten in the USA and Israel; a demonstration through carefully ducumented research findings of how play contributes to children's higher levels of school achievement; and recommendations on how to influence administrators and teachers to include play as an important and supported component of the curriculum for every child.