(Jen Myers contributed to this article)
Lowell – The Healey-Driscoll Administration announced yesterday that it is awarding $1.2 million in grants to seven school districts to incorporate playful learning strategies into preschool through third grade classrooms.
Lowell Public Schools is one of those districts, receiving a $175,000 share of the funding.
The money will provide professional development and coaching to district and school leaders, classroom educators and other specialists on how to use play as an effective instructional approach that leads to deeper learning and more equitable access to learning while also supporting students’ physical, social and emotional development.
In the Mill City, LPS will use the funding on a Playful Learning pilot program at the Lincoln Elementary School and the Cardinal O’Connell Early Learning Center.
Ten teachers at the Lincoln – two from each grade level PreK-3 – as well as a teacher-coach at the Cardinal will undergo extensive training in this area in order to incorporate Playful Learning into their schools.
Lowell Public Schools Early Childhood Coordinator Lisa Van Thiel said the program does not bring new or different curriculum, it just incorporates new strategies through which to teach the existing curriculum. It is a move away from rigid routines and toward more toward flexible, student-centered activities that foster curiosity, interaction, and joy in learning.
Play – learning through games, songs, storytelling, and collaborative projects encourages exploration, creativity, critical thinking, and collaboration and makes the curriculum more engaging for students; therefore, they retain the information better and build foundational skills, particularly in reading, more quickly.
Play learning also increases opportunities for inclusion of multi-lingual learners and students with disabilities to participate and learning along with and from their peers.
“We are hoping to expand this training to other schools as more funding becomes available in the future,” said Van Thiel.
“Many studies have shown the critical importance of building literacy, numeracy, and critical thinking skills in children in the very early grades,” adds Superintendent of Schools Liam Skinner. “This pilot program is a great opportunity to rethink some of the existing strategies and make learning at the Pre-K and elementary levels more engaging and ultimately more effective for our students. We are grateful for the Healey-Driscoll administration’s commitment to listening to educators and finding ways to continue to evolve and improve public education in Massachusetts.”
“We are committed to helping our youngest students have a strong foundation for success as they begin their educations,” said Governor Maura Healey. “Guided play has been proven to improve students’ language development, skills needed for mathematics, and physical and emotional health. This funding will help make sure that our teachers have the training and resources they need to incorporate these strategies in the classroom.”
