Innovative Use of Local Resources for Children's Play
A Case in Malaysia
Ong Puay Tee
The role of play in children's development and learning is well documented. As far back as 1826, Froebel (1782-1852) noted that the value of play lay in the opportunities it provides for sensory experiences, which in turn act as the foundation for intellectual development (Froebel [1826] 2003).
Levin (1996), applying Piagetian and Vygotskian theories, advocates for play as the center of the early childhood curriculum because play is integral to children's construction of knowledge. McCune (1993) argues that play activities are paramount in the development of consciousness of self and others.
Reviewing the history of the portrayal of play in art and literature, Saracho and Spodek (1995) find that play can help children deal with their emotions and understand the physical and social world. This is supported by Beaven (2000), who says that play provides opportunities for children to be spirited and to accept challenges.
Play is generally accepted as the universal and foundational language of all children. Children have an innate curiosity about their surroundings. Almost anything they do in exploring their environment leads children to gain knowledge-for example, learning about shapes and sizes, cause and effect, winning and losing, and the varied and changing properties of materials.
However, while play is a universal activity, it is also culture specific. For instance, Bennett (2002) argues that traditional stories help children connect with reading and familiarize them with the rhythms of oral language. Oke and colleagues (1999), in their study of play in urban India, find that reconstruction and re-creation of play spaces using local and improvised play materials result in remarkable abilities among children. The richness and novelty of the equipment provide a foundation for creativity and can help children learn to care for the environment.
Play and learning become more meaningful when children are familiar with and able to relate to the play equipment. This is where early childhood centers can play a pivotal role. Because more and more children attend such centers, it is important to consider play from both developmental and cultural perspectives.
Play in today's world
Play activities for children have changed over the years. Children today frequently stay indoors, engaging with electronic media such as television, computers, and video games. When there is outdoor play, it is common to see playgrounds equipped with brand-name materials from large companies. Are we witnessing the commercialization of children's play?
Not only are brand-name resources costly, they do not provide a varied, culturally shaped, educational landscape. Consequently, children may not get the stimulation necessary for their overall development. A case in point is the way too much television viewing undermines children's cognitive, social, physical, and emotional development (Levin 1996).
Sadly, this scenario is taking place in Malaysia as early childhood centers move toward instant, ready-made, commercial products for both outdoor and indoor play. This article is about designing and building an early childhood center's playground by using local resources and recycling used materials.
Play in a Malaysian preschool
Recognizing the importance of play, the Malaysian Ministry of Education has made play an integral part of the preschool curriculum. The National Preschool Curriculum, implemented in 2003, lists learning through play as a preschool teaching and learning strategy. Learning through play recognizes the need for an informal, activity-oriented approach to preschool education that addresses the learning needs, styles, and development of children from four to six years old.
Taking all these factors into consideration, one preschool center in the state of Sabah, Malaysia, combined the concept of play with the principles of the three Re's-recycle, reuse, and reproduce.
The preschool center in Sabah operates from two rows of semidetached houses. The management and staff laid the plans for transforming a barren outdoor space into the center's playground. Faced with a tight budget, they agreed to use low-cost, local, and recycled materials. They named their mission the Make Local Project.
Planning the play environment
The planning stage for the new outdoor environment was mainly undertaken by the center's management and staff, who forged a smart partnership. Everyone was regarded as a resource and encouraged to contribute ideas. Together they brainstormed the resource collection, construction, and usage processes.
The group thoroughly considered the purpose of each piece of equipment, its age-appropriateness, location, and safety features before coming to a final decision. For example, in the construction of a piece of equipment with monkey bars, swings, and a slide, the target group was children from two to four years old. The purpose was to sharpen children's eye-hand-leg coordination, which influences the ability to use both sides of the body together and to plan and execute movements.
Use of this integrated play structure requires concentration and helps children acquire confidence. It involves physical skills such as climbing, sliding, balancing, and swinging; social skills such as turn taking and helping others; and communication skills. To ensure children's safety, the builder rounded the edges and constructed it low on soft, sandy ground. It is located in the center's front yard, so the children can play on it upon arrival at the center and before leaving.
For five- and six-year-old children, the group designed a different integrated play structure-a jungle gym and slide. This piece of equipment introduces the concept of positive reinforcement; that is, it allows a child to enjoy the thrill of sliding down only after having climbed to the top. The activity fosters a spirit of trying and the satisfaction of accomplishment.
Sabah is abundant in both its ethnic richness and physical space. The state has many rivers, with hanging bridges linking the sides. The playground planners wanted to capture this familiar geographic feature in their center's surroundings. They decided to construct a hanging bridge, to be used by the five- and six-year-olds. The hanging bridge was constructed between the two rows of houses. Crossing requires a great deal of courage and balance, as the bridge shakes when one moves across it.
Collecting resources
Because Sabah is richly endowed with timber and other natural resources as well as recyclable materials such as used tires and discarded cardboard, it was easy to find materials. At this stage, parents began to help. Through their own capacities (one parent owns a chain of tire shops) or through networking, they collected materials-tires, tree trunks, planks, paint, and steel bars.
In one instance, a parent transported a huge used tire to the center. After the tire was placed in the play yard, its center was filled to the top with cement, providing a platform for the children. This item is a big hit with the younger children. Standing on it, they learn concepts like high and low and up and down.
Constructing the equipment
During the construction stage, children suggested colors. Teachers provided strategic input and some manual labor, and the center's gardener did the lion's share of the construction. His creativity and ingenuity in converting ideas into reality were truly incredible. For example, when asked how the large cable spool might be used, he suggested turning it into a merry-go-round. No one had a clue as to how to do that, but he persevered, and today the child-powered merry-go-round stands tall, turning 'round proudly and enlivening the children's days. It teaches them about direction, speed, and cooperation.
Fallen tree trunks were cut into different lengths and converted into a balancing course for the five- and six-year-olds. Children learn to take turns, to begin from the lowest step, and to balance themselves as they climb to the next step. Upon reaching the tallest base, they jump down.
Sand was a rich source of learning for the children of yesteryear, who drew, wrote, played, and ran in it. But not anymore. As the demands of education take their toll, the only time children have to touch and play with sand is when they are at the beach. To bring back the fun and fulfillment of sand play, a sandpit edged with bricks was constructed. Beach sand fills it, and when the pit is not in use, it is covered to keep the sand clean.
Another landmark play structure is the traditional playhouse. The center wanted to celebrate Mother's Day with a difference. With the theme Home Is Where My Family Is, a traditional Malaysian house was built using coconut leaves and bamboo. A contemporary version was built alongside the traditional playhouse to enable children to differentiate the types of dwellings in Sabah.
Used vehicle tires are another resource for children's play. The center capitalized on this no-cost, high-value material in the construction of stimulating play equipment. Tires were an effective alternative to tree trunks in the design of a second balancing course. Another tire displays the center's logo.
Outdoor art activities give children refreshing and enriching experiences. To help the center realize this idea, sawmills donated planks to make wooden easels. Children look forward to this activity. They ask, "Teacher Tan, when can we use this easel again?" or "I want to ask my mummy to buy this easel so I can draw at home."
Using play stations
Use of play materials varies depending on the time of day. Children play with age-appropriate items upon arrival at the center and before leaving for home. Each play station has a staff member positioned nearby. For example, at the hanging bridge, climber, and sandpit stations, teachers ensure children's safety, provide support and encouragement, and scaffold children's play.
Play stations are also used during classroom activities. On typical school days, children are divided into groups by age. Most spend a full day at school, dropped off by parents on their way to work and collected on the way home.
Group activities are thematic. Usually each activity lasts 20 minutes for the two- to four-year-olds and 30 minutes for the five- and six-year-olds. If the weekly theme is animals, for instance, the children play animal games, sing animal songs (as in "Old McDonald," but substituting local animals), make drawings of animals on the easels outdoors, and enjoy storytelling using glove puppets and storybooks. They may also go on a field trip to the nearby zoo.
Implications of the local approach
The processes experienced and products created during the Make Local Project were heartening to the staff. If empowerment is a strategy for providing job satisfaction, then this mission has been successful. Staff were recognized for their creativity, imagination, and more important, comradeship. Parents acknowledged their contributions, and the school provided monetary rewards such as extra allowances.
The playground equipment facilitates a strategy that supports learning through play. During the construction stage, the children witnessed the conversion of familiar raw materials into usable products. This experience may help them to sharpen their own creative skills and to see the potential in a variety of materials.
All said, these locally produced, user-friendly products for children's play are cost saving and practical. They bring joy and learning to the children and satisfaction to the staff.
Conclusion
Play is an integral learning component in a child's life. As children nowadays spend a great deal of time in child care centers, nurseries, and preschool centers, administrators and teachers can make children's days more meaningful by trying out a Make Local Project of their own. With imagination, drive, and innovativeness, staff can create culturally sensitive equipment unique to their center and environment. We will always be grateful to the late Pakcik Kadir Karsidi for making this playground possible.
References
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Chiam, H.K. 2000. Preschool a crucial investment. Sunday Star, February 20, 15.
Froebel, F. [1826] 2003. The education of man. Trans. W.N. Hailmann in 1887. Grand Rapids, MI: Froebel Foundation USA.
Levin, D.E. 1996. Endangered play, endangered development: A constructivist view of the role of play in development and learning. ERIC, ED 405104.
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McCune, L. 1993. The development of play as the development of consciousness. New Directions for Child Development 59: 67-79.
Oke, M., A. Khattar, P. Pant, & T.S. Saraswathi. 1999. A profile of children's play in urban India. Childhood: A Global Journal of Child Research 6 (2): 207-19.
Saracho, O.N., & B. Spodek. 1995. Children's play and early childhood education: Insights from history and theory. Journal of Education 177 (3): 129-48.
Ong Puay Tee, MBA, is a lecturer in management studies. She has been an owner/manager of a preschool center and an accredited child care trainer with the Ministry of National Unity and Social Development in Malaysia.
