Nature Play in the Preschool Yard

Bibliographic Information Author(s) Affiliation: Type of Resource: Summary of essential information most essential to your study or to your background learning: Way in which this source influences the field of Early Childhood Education or related fields: Potential relevance to your research topic and study:

Rivkin, M. (2013). Nature play in the preschool yard. Community Playthings.

Professor of ECE at UMBC, author for NAEYC publications Trade article documenting curriculum strategies ~provides simple curriculum themes that can be used when outdoors ~suggests how to use different items to support nature play (stones, trees, sticks, etc.)

~reminds teachers/parents how easy nature play really is and how to incorporate it into any outdoor play time

~use as suggestions for teachers

Being Confined Within? Constructions of the Good Childhood and Outdoor Play
Bibliographic Information (APA Formatting): Kernan, M., & Devine, D. (2010). Being confined within? Constructions of the good childhood and outdoor play in early childhood education and care settings in Ireland. Children and Society, 24, 371-385. Author(s) Affiliation: Type of Resource: Summary of essential information most essential to your study or to your background learning: University College Dublin Scholarly article presenting a study about the outdoor education experiences in ECE settings in Ireland. ~Covers reasons children dont play outside- fear of risk and dangers outdoors, proliferation of indoor play technologies; as well as results of not playing outdoorsobesity and disconnection to nature. ~children mention that playing outdoors is important to them ~a gap between what is best for children and what state policies allow, leading to the confinement mentioned in the article title ~study researched what value is placed on outdoors in ECE settings ~study was done at four different and diverse settings over 1 year, focusing on the place of the outdoors in ECE centers and what good childhood and play mean, as well as the challenges/contradictions ~Access was a problem for 11% ~outlines what a good childhood consists of in Table 1 ~discusses reasons teachers feel it is important to be outside- freedom, sensory stimulation, creativity ~allows readers to see the importance of outdoor play and the realization that it does not happen as often as needed ~proves the need of outdoor play ~validates other studies on the need for children to play outdoors ~question ideas for surveys ~outlines potential response I may receive from parents and teachers, so I can be prepared ~gives reasons people choose not to play outdoors so I can ensure that they do not occur during my study (such as unsafe conditions) ~discusses the important of playing in a natural area ~encourages the adults to allow children to direct the play in a natural setting ~lists features suggested to be a part of a good outdoor space

Way in which this source influences the field of Early Childhood Education or related fields: Potential relevance to your research topic and study:

Nature and Its Influence on Childrens Outdoor Play

Bibliographic Information (APA Formatting): Author(s) Affiliation: Type of Resource: Summary of essential information most essential to your study or to your background learning: Way in which this source influences the field of Early Childhood Education or related fields: Potential relevance to your research topic and study: Dowdell, K., Gray, T., & Malone, K. (2011). Nature and its influence on childrens outdoor play. Australian Journal of Outdoor Education, 15(2), 24-35. University of Wollongong and University of Western Sydney Scholarly article, study done in Australia regarding how play is influenced by what is present in outdoor play environments ~discusses the influence of nature on childrens play types ~pinpoints access to nature and an outdoor play environment as essential to childrens play ~compares two very different ECE centers with regards to nature play; one is an old warehouse with an artificial outdoor environment and the other has an emphasis on nature and sustainable education. Differences in nature play are evident. ~provides a sample of centers seen anywhere and their different approaches to outdoor play ~shows that access can be a problem and should be researched on a site basis

~can relate Malvern to a middle ground of these two centers- not quite a warehouse, but definitely not a nature school. ~use in background of research section as nature play background ~use as comparison to play types observed during research

Active vs. Passive Screen Time for Young Children

Bibliographic Information (APA Formatting): Sweetser, P., Johnson, D., Ozdowska, A., & Wyeth, P. (2012). Active versus passive screen time for young children. Australian Journal of Early Childhood, 37(4), 94-98. Author(s) Affiliation: Type of Resource: Summary of essential information most essential to your study or to your background learning: Queensland University of Technology Scholarly article, report/review of a longitudinal study done by the Australian government ~defines screen time as use of TV, DVD, video games and computers, as well as active vs. passive ~recommendations for amount of time spent in front of a screen, as well as repercussions for too much ~also views screen time through a positive lens, how certain types of screen time can increase childrens physical and cognitive activityassociated benefits for health and development ~shows a difference in types of screen time, and suggests that not all screen time is negative ~gives the field a different lens through which to look at screen time, as it is mostly viewed as negative ~provides concrete data for results of too much passive screen time

Way in which this source influences the field of Early Childhood Education or related fields: Potential relevance to your research topic and study:

~definitions of active vs. passive can be used in questionnaires and analysis of data ~shows another viewpoint of screen time to help my writing be unbiased ~positive and negative effects of screen time are discussed, which can be used in background/context sections

Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from NatureDeficit Disorder
Bibliographic Information (APA Formatting): Author(s) Affiliation: Type of Resource: Summary of essential information most essential to your study or to your background learning: Louv, R. (2008). Last child in the woods: Saving our children from nature-deficit disorder (Updated and expanded ed.). New York, NY: Algonquin Books. Chairman of Children and Nature Network, author of many nature-related books Book presenting the importance of outdoor play through a variety of different lenses (overall well-being, nature awareness, health implications) ~defines nature deficit disorder, causes, and effects ~details the impact of nature on children, why children need to be exposed to/engage in nature, some challenges to outdoor play and reasons children dont play outside, and how to reunite children with nature ~suggests nature play as a movement and encourages readers to join that movement ~debunks many of the reason for the fears people have of outdoor play (such as overgeneralization of dangers- children are kidnapped all the time, when statistics show otherwise) ~very influential book that all parents should read, as well as all teachers and/or childcare center directors ~national bestseller! Brought childrens disconnection to nature to the foreground ~has increased activism in governmental realm as well ~back section gives suggestions to incorporate nature into lesson plans with nature activities for children, as well as suggestions for parents to help take family time back into nature ~lots of information for definition of nature play and background section

Way in which this source influences the field of Early Childhood Education or related fields: Potential relevance to your research topic and study:

Making the Most of Outdoor Time with Preschool Children

Bibliographic Information (APA Formatting): Author(s) Affiliation: Cosco, N., DeBord, K., Hestenes, L., McGinnis, J. & Moore, R. (2010) Making the most of outdoor time with preschool children. Community Playthings. N. Cosco-Education Specialist, Natural Learning Initiative North Carolina State University K. DeBord- Associate Professor and State Extension Specialist, Child Development North Carolina State University L. Hestenes- Associate Professor University of North Carolina at Greensboro J. McGinnis- Certified Playground Safety Inspector Child Care Health Consultant Health Directions, Inc R. Moore- Professor Landscape Architecture and Director, Natural Learning Initiative, North Carolina State University Trade article presenting teaching examples and strategies ~article serves as a guide to presenting nature play to preschoolers ~outlines suggestions, examples and guidelines of important aspects of nature play (program, interactions, the environment itself, etc.)

Type of Resource: Summary of essential information most essential to your study or to your background learning: Way in which this source influences the field of Early Childhood Education or related fields: Potential relevance to your research topic and study:

~can be used by teachers as a how to for implementing nature play into their curriculum

~provides question suggestions to use during student interviews, teacher meetings, and on parent questionnaires ~ can use examples/key points listed as a guide during observations ~use suggestions for lesson ideas during intervention