Schemas in Play | Noticing Children’s Repeated Patterns of Play

If you've ever watched a child throw the same thing 400 times, move every toy from one side of the room to the other, line everything up or spend half the morning putting things in a box and taking them back out again… there might actually be a reason. 😂

Schemas in Play is a simple, practitioner friendly guide to help you understand some of those repeated patterns we see every day and, more importantly, know what to actually do with that information.

Inside you'll find 10 common play schemas:

Trajectory • Transporting • Rotation • Enclosing • Enveloping • Containing • Connecting • Positioning • Orientation • Transforming 

Each schema is broken down without loads of unnecessary theory. You'll find what it actually means, what it might look like in real life, why a child might be doing it, who you might see it from and simple ways to support it using resources you probably already have.

There's also a big focus on looking before redirecting. Schemas aren't behaviours we need to stop or activities we need to manufacture. They're little clues to what a child might be trying to understand. Sometimes the best next step really is giving them more time, more space or a safer way to keep doing the thing they're already fascinated by.

And importantly, this isn't about sticking another label on a child. Children might explore one schema, several at once or come back to the same idea in completely different ways. There is no set order and no right amount of time. 

Perfect for: Childminders, nursery practitioners, EYFS teams, students and anyone who keeps finding their entire provision inside one handbag and would quite like to know why.

Format: 12 page digital PDFAge range: Birth to fiveIncludes: 10 schema guides + practitioner reflection prompts

Notice it. Understand it. Support it.

The Early Years Edit