By Amber Ogunsanya-William - Playworker Amber Play is a SUPERPOWER


Before we talk pedagogy, curriculum or implementation strategies, I need you- yes, you- to take a quick trip back to childhood. Not the version of you with colour-coded spreadsheets and a fully charged phone. The version who believed a stick could be a sword, a wand, or even a microphone.


Close your eyes for a second.


Remember when the world felt like one giant invitation? The park tree wasn’t just a tree, it was a castle tower, a pirate lookout or a secret base. Remember sneaking through the front door pretending you were a spy on a mission? Make- believe wasn’t really pretend at all; it was real because your whole body believed it. That is play at its very best. And it’s the beating heart of early years. If childhood had a job description, “professional imaginer” would be right at the top.


Why play matters more than ever in early years


Play isn’t a “nice extra” squeezed in between phonics and tidy-up time. It’s the engine of early childhood development, the way children are biologically wired to learn. If brains came with instruction manuals, page one would simply say: “Let them play.”


Research from Professor Helen Dodd shows that adventurous, child-led play helps children build emotional resilience, self-regulation and confidence. In short: play builds brave kids.


Play isn’t a break from learning; it is the learning. Yet with increasing assessment pressures, tighter budgets and rising expectations, many practitioners still feel they need to justify it. The good news? Meaningful play doesn’t require a Pinterest-perfect classroom or a huge budget. It simply needs intentionality, trust, and a little willingness to let go.


Here are some simple, research-aligned ways to weave play into daily practice:


2. Offer materials, not instructions


Helen Dodd’s research shows that open-ended play supports resilience. Swap “make a flower” for: • “Here are some materials - what can you create?”


Let children lead. Let them surprise you. Let them make something that looks nothing like a flower and everything like childhood.


4 For more ideas and inspiration visit ypo.co.uk/littlelearners


1. Turn transitions into micro-play Instead of “line up quietly”, try: • “Tiptoe like mice to the carpet.” • “Stomp like giants to the playground.” • “Float like bubbles to the reading corner.”


If you’ve ever tried to get 30 four-year-olds to line up quietly, you already know bubbles are the better option!


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