Lego is being used to equip 50 caregivers in the informal settlements in Lansdowne and the surrounding areas to use cognitive learning through play in their daily interaction with children.
“We have a total of 50 caregivers per week per facilitator who undergo this workshop and we have 15 Lego Caregiver Learning through Play Facilitators across the Western Cape,” says Ayesha Davids, Lego trainer at the Early Learning Resource Unit.
“Each caregiver receives a certificate on completion, to accompany their CVs, especially those looking to further their careers as ECD practitioners.
“The caregivers find comfort in these workshops, especially those who find the role of a caregiver trying and discouraging at times. They walk away better equipped and feeling supported.”
At the workshops, the caregivers receive knowledge and skills of responsive care, how children learn and their role in helping their children learn through play.
“Children develop their intellectual, social, emotional, physical and creative skills,” Davids pointed out, “reaching appropriate developmental milestones and have better educational outcomes and skills for holistic development. Children have increased access to playful experiences in the home.”
The practitioners facilitate programmes that strengthen play-based learning and responsive caregiving in the home.
“The practitioners have knowledge of how children learn through play,” Davids said.
“They facilitate playful interactions between a caregiver and the children. The practitioners have the information, tools and support to engage caregivers on Caregivers Learning through Play (CLtP) and responsive caregiving.”
The idea is to integrate CLtP and caregiver support into ECD programmes.
“The goals and objectives of CLtP are compiled in a four-session workshop focussing on self-esteem, parenting and play,” Davids said. “Self-esteem helps the caregiver know and understand their value and how it affects the child. The caregiver is helped to identify and describe how feelings of achievement and peer support build better self-esteem. If you feel good and have good self-esteem, you can provide better responsive care.
“In parenting, the caregiver knows and understands the value of responsive care and playful interaction, listing and understanding the benefits and characteristics of nurturing care for brain development. Through play, the caregiver knows and understands how playful learning leads to holistic development,” Davids says.
- For details, contact Davids on 072 369 3685.
