Bishop Grosseteste University
Classroom Focused Developmental Research Project Title:
Critically analyse whether the learning environment, and the impact it
has on children’s learning, interest and knowledge of a current class
topic, is enhanced by the incorporation of a ‘topic related’ home
corner/role play area in an early years setting.
Classroom research 2
Level 6
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Critically analyse whether the learning environment, and the impact it has on
children’s learning, interest and knowledge of a current class topic, is enhanced by
the incorporation of a ‘topic related’ home corner/role play area in an early years
setting.
Abstract
This research project aimed to determine whether enhancing the ‘home corner’ by
transforming it into a ‘topic related area’ within the EYFS classroom would have an
impact on children’s attentiveness and enthusiasm to the given current topic and
therefore have a positive effect on their learning. Key themes such as the
importance of play, its impact on children’s learning and the role of the teacher in
EYFS were explored and addressed. Through observing and recording the
participant’s discussion or roleplay I tested whether a ‘topic related home corner’
would have a positive impact on the children’s learning by encouraging interest in
the current topic - All Creatures Great and Small. My hypothesis correlated with the
data and research found and presented. There was a noticeable increase in both
topic related discussions and minutes of topic related play from the beginning of the
study – where the children were exploring in an uncontrolled, manipulated home
corner which was not related the class topic when compared with the end of the
study where the home corner was controlled and had been created to relate to the
topic. This suggests a greater interest and knowledge on the class topic due to the
influence of a topic related home corner.
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Introduction
Play and learning are ‘intrinsically linked to a child’s sense of self, their identity and
their efficacy as independent learners’ (Bowman, 2000).
Play underpins a child’s learning within the EYFS and and aspects of their
development. Through play, children develop ‘language skills, their emotions and
creativity, social and intellectual skills’ (Beckley, 2012). Play within the EYFS can take
place indoors and outdoors and it is in these different environments that children
explore and discover their immediate world. It is here they practice new ideas and
skills; they ‘take risks, show imagination and solve problems on their own or with
others’ (Bowman, 2000). Adults provide time and space and appropriate resources,
and are arguably crucial within both a child’s life at home and in school. The ‘home
corner’ is an area in Early Years that supports both individual and cooperative play in
children, and is heavily dependant on adult intervention to shape and create the
area. From own experience and observation it is apparent that many children spend
considerable time in the ‘home corner’ – taking part in an array of activities; role
playing, stirring, cooking, cleaning, pouring, mixing, reading, writing, fixing, helping,
playing bedtime, brushing, trying things on and taking them off.
Combining my school placement in the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) with
extensive further reading and research has led to the formulation of this research
project. This research project aims to determine whether enhancing the ‘home
corner’ by transforming it into a ‘topic related area’ within the EYFS classroom will
have an impact on children’s attentiveness and enthusiasm to the given current
topic and therefore have a positive effect on their learning. Key themes such as the
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importance of play, its impact on children’s learning and the role of the teacher in
EYFS will be explored and addressed. Fundamentally, the objective of this research
project is to illustrate that enhancing children’s play in the home corner or role play
area with a ‘topic related theme’ has a positive impact on children’s learning and
development because it increases their enthusiasm and attentiveness for that
current class subject or topic.
Literature Review
Children involved in ‘exploring, imitating, and pretending’ (Johnstone and NahmadWilliams 2010) in the home corner are often content to play by themselves or
alongside others and some other children play with friends. It is notably an area
within the EYFS which is popular with children where they often re-enact events they
have experienced and sometimes things that they are learning about in their topic.
By providing a setting for role-play in the ‘home corner’, children are able to ‘make
sense’ of their immediate world; children have opportunities to work together,
‘express their feelings’, to use language to communicate roles and ‘respond to one
another’s needs and requests’ (Beckley, 2012). All of these activities can promote
and secure a child’s learning and confidence on a topic; Croll (1986) supports this
and states that having independent ‘topic related’ activities through a play based
learning provision increases a child’s ‘level of enthusiasm and attentiveness’ for a
subject as it begins to hold a purpose for them. Johnstone and Nahmad-Williams
(2010) also supports this notion, they state that opportunities for learning through
role-play in a given area will not only promote a child’s knowledge on a given subject
but also teach them to ‘use and develop their imagination’. Beckley (2012)
additionally suggests the effectiveness of allowing the children ‘to develop’ the role
play area themselves, suggesting what ‘theme it should have and what resources
they need’ and then allowing them to help you resource and develop it. David (1996)
shows support for this notion, within the EYFS the adult should seek to ‘discover
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what children are interested in, know and can do’ so they can support their learning
‘more effectively’.
For Schmidt (2012) an active, ‘play- based area’ for learning forms a ‘suitable basis’
for mark-making and number work as it allows for informal writing activities to begin
in which children develop their own understanding of writing and number. Bayley &
Featherstone (2011) agree with the notion of play being crucial to discovering
reading and writing independently, it is the ‘freedom that play provides which allows
children to experiment with such activities’. It appears from the research assessed so
far that the role of the home corner and role play within the EYFS setting is vital and
positively affects children’s learning and therefore their progress.
Vygotsky (1978) also placed great emphasise on social interaction and
communication being essential for learning, with the ‘developmental process deeply
rooted in the links between individual and social history’. Through play, a child
further develops their creativity and social interactions. Glenn et al (2006) states that
it is this communication, exploration and interaction that ‘extends children’s
learning’, and that this needs to be supported with provisions ‘in order for children
to flourish’.
Nevertheless, there are tensions between structure and freedom within an early
years setting; it can be very confusing for teachers to establish how to achieve an
appropriate balance between the structuring of play and allowing the child freedom
of choice in play. Consequently, in a lot of situations in early years the ‘home corner’
can become a place where purely free-play takes place with no learning and
sometimes can cause behavioural problems within the class. The effectiveness of the
‘home corner’ or ‘role play area’ on a child’s learning has come under scrutiny over
the years for this reason. As David (1996) has noted, if children are to be offered
meaningful and challenging opportunities for learning through play, there are
‘obvious implications for adults' skills in observation, assessment and diagnosis’ and
the teacher is required to have ‘a deep understanding of play, language and their
learning potential' for it to be effective. The role of the adult, according to many
studies (e.g. Smith, 1986; Meadows and Cashdan, 1988), does seem to be absolutely
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critical in these situations such as in a role play or home corner situation to ensure
the children’s play is actually benefitting and promoting their learning. The issue of
the teacher’s role in structuring, supporting and challenging a child’s learning
through play, of course, is much broader than 'play' or creative development, as
highlighted by Edwards and Knight (1994). While it has been difficult to demonstrate
that children do learn through play, insights from developmental psychology
demonstrate that play may serve a wide range of vital functions in human
development and experience which lead to and aid learning.
It would appear from the research already explored; that a ‘topic related’ home
corner would have a positive effect on a child’s learning and would further and
promote their knowledge on that subject. Creating a ‘topic related’ home corner
with the children (as Beckley, 2012, suggests) might also overcome this struggle
teachers face as although the area is still used for learning through play, there is a
clear focus and theme to guide children; this supports David (1996) and Smith’s
(1986) findings on the importance of adult intervention and guidance. This research
is contributing to the rational for my study and report.
According to Hudson (1973), Einstein himself considered 'combinatory play' to be a
key part of his own creative thinking and learning. There is some evidence that
children who have plenty of play experiences such as dramatic play or role play, are
more readily creative on other tasks in their education (Pepler, 1982). Thus play
which has a strong imitative, intellectual, convergent or neutral 'flavour' seems to
foster less creativity than experimental play.
However, contradictory to my predictions that a ‘topic related’ home corner will
expand and guide children’s knowledge and interest in a subject; Broadhead’s (2010)
research indicates that children’s problem solving and learning is more evident in
home corner or role play areas where resources are more open-ended rather than
controlled or ‘adult led or initiated’. Nutbrown (1994) supported this hypothesis and
stated that objects within a home corner or role play area should be ‘open and
flexible’ and not controlled so children can transform them independently into
whatever their ‘ideas, imagination and experiences want them to be’. A number of
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researchers have suggested (Woods and Jeffrey, 1996; Wragg, 1997) that bringing
creativity and freedom into a child’s thinking and daily activities in the classroom is
vital.
Through conducting this review, a key question has been raised for my research; will
a ‘topic related’ home corner have a more positive effect on a child’s learning and
interest on that topic when compared with an open, non controlled home corner
where children are completely free to create their own role play?
My hypothesis is that the ‘topic related’ home corner will have a more noticeable
and positive impact on the children’s learning as it will increase interest and
knowledge on the current class topic. The key question will be explored throughout
the research study, with findings being analysed and discussed in the next chapters.
Research
The research was conducted in a small Infants Church of England school in a rural
village within a Derbyshire. The population for this research assignment consisted of
twenty-nine students from a mixed ability and (all white) British ethnicity in early
years foundation stage (EYFS). However, for the purpose of this assignment, a
sample of 10 participants was selected each day for the four-day period.
Collecting data on all 29 students could have had consequences for the validity and
reliability of the assignment. It would also serve as an impractical use of time and
possibly unrealistic for behaviour management when working in a small home
corner. The sample participates were selected using a purposive sampling strategy;
purposive sampling enables the researcher to ‘handpick the cases to be included in
the sample on the basis of their judgement of their typically or possession of the
characteristics being sought’ (Cohen, 2007). The children that were selected were of
mixed ability (lower ability, middle ability and higher ability) and a mixed gender.
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The primary method used for data collection was observations; through observing
and recording the children’s activities and any discussion or roleplay of our class
topic to test whether a ‘topic related home corner’ will have a positive impact on the
children’s learning by encouraging interest in the current topic - All Creatures Great
and Small.
Ten different children were observed over each of the four day’s within a 15-minute
period to provide as much validity as possible to the study. To further ensure the
validity and reliability of the project an initial, introductory observation was
conducted on the first day. The purpose of this was to provide a basis of comparison
for the preceding data of the children’s activities in their original uncontrolled home
corner, which wasn’t related to the topic of the term.
The observations of the children after the initial day then followed on day two, three
and four with the new, controlled (topic related) home corner. After the first and
initial observation in the original (non controlled, non topic related) home corner, I
gathered ideas and mind mapped with the children that day which allowed the
children to help design, shape and develop ideas for the home corner themselves
(see appendix). Following from Beckley’s (2012) recommendations discussed in my
literature review; I worked with the children for some time on the first day of the
study to gather information from the group by asking them what they would like to
have in their home corner which was related to our topic. From this the home corner
was developed into a night-time home corner with nocturnal animals within it, a tree
with insects in, a bed, books about animals, pyjamas, nocturnal soft toys, a moon
and stars and a camp fire (see appendix).
Using observation as my research method was appropriate as observations allow for
research to be conducted in a child’s ‘natural’ environment, meaning the data is
truly representative of their attitudes (Simpson and Tuson 2003). Arguably, this can
also acts as a limitation to my research as children may act differently with the
presence of an adult sat watching in hopes of ‘doing the right thing’. Using more
than one technique of data collection through a process of triangulation is seen as
‘highly desirable as an overarching research strategy’. Therefore, another strength of
observation is that it can effectively complement other methods and thus enhance
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the quality and reliability of the evidence available gathered by researcher (Simpson
1995).
The secondary method for data collection was a questionnaire consisting of one
simple question; as in KS1, and especially within the EYFS during questionnaires
children can often go off on a tangent and data collected isn’t useful or reliable
(Simpson and Tuson, 2003) so it was important to keep it as simple and clear as
possible. It was decided that the question used would simply ask the children “What
are we learning about this week, what is our class topic?” and ask this question on
each day during the study. Reflecting upon my research method choices it is clear
that observations were appropriate as it generated high-quality, quantitative results;
and the short questionnaire was a quick but precise way of measuring the child’s
knowledge what the current class topic was. The children were also not asked the
question straight after the 15-minute period in the home corner, they were each
asked between 30 minutes and 90 minutes after the observation. They were not
asked the question with other children around who could help them or tell them the
answer, in order to gather the most reliable accurate information and answers from
the children.
Although Cohen (2007) states that, ‘threats to validity and reliability can never be
erased completely’; the research methodologies were planned in advance and
shared with the school-based mentor and teaching assistants; communication being
essential in maintaining the ethical standards, validity, and reliability of the
assignment. The observations were conducted in the same area of the classroom –
the home corner; this environment was well known to the children so they were
completely comfortable, as any otherwise could have affected the validity and
reliability of the research project.
Ethical consideration was taken into account throughout the research, the welfare of
the children ‘being paramount’ (Denscombe, 2010). Prior to this starting the project
an ethical guidelines approval form was signed and permission for the research was
granted. Confidentiality and anonymity was applied at all times, the name of the
school and of the children will not be used in the presentation of data. Instead,
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Data analysis
Topic Related Discussion and Play
10
10
9
8
7
6
Topic Related Discussion
5
Topic related play (mins)
4
3
2
1
0
Day One
Day Two
Day Three
Day Four
On an initial observation of the above chart it shows a positive increase in activities
throughout the observation period. The first chart shows the recordings of topic
related discussion and topic related play occurring in the home corner during the 15minute intervals for each of the four days. It shows that there wasn’t one minute of
topic related play on the first day where the home corner was uncontrolled and not
topic related. It also shows on the first initial observation on day one that only one
discussion was held which was related to the class topic, which was ‘All creatures
Great and Small’. It was then after the first day of observations, I then created the
topic related home corner with the help, input and mind mapping from the children
(see appendix). On the second day of observations there was a noticeable increase in
both topic related discussions and minutes of topic related play. As you can see, the
topic related discussions rose to 6 discussions by the fourth day of the study when
compared with one discussion on the first initial day of observing. The amount of
time children spent in topic related play rose from 0 minutes of play on the first
observation (day one) to a noticeable 9 minutes of play on the last observation (day
four). There appears to have been more topic related ‘play’ occurring when the
children entered the home corner rather than discussion, nevertheless both
activities showed a positive increase as the study went on.
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Questionnaire Answers
9
8
7
6
5
Knew the class topic
4
Did not know class topic
3
2
1
0
Day One
Day Two
Day Three
Day Four
The above chart shows the children’s answers to the one question asked after each
observation; “What is our class topic?”, or if needed prompting; “What are we
learning about this term?”. It shows that on the first day of the study, in the
uncontrolled or manipulated home corner, only three out of the ten children knew
what the class topic was. Whereas on the third day of the study, after the home
corner was transformed and controlled into a topic related home corner, six out of
the ten children knew what our class topic was and answered correctly. There is a
clear difference in amount of right answers given when comparing the first day’s
answers to the fourth and last day’s answers (3/10 vs 8/10).
The table below shows all of the data gathered from the observation sheets (see
appendix) put into a table, which made it easier for me to initially analyse after the
study rather than analysing four separate observational sheets.
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Topic related
role play
(Amount of
time spent)
Discussions
Info
on
topic
within home
corner
6
0mins
1
5
6mins
3
Day
No of Boys
No of Girls
One
4
Two
5
Three
4
6
7mins
5
Four
3
7
9mins
6
13
1 boy in
discussion on
what
creature he
can see
3 girls 1 boy
3
separate
discussions
on spotting
different
animals
4 boys 3 girls
discussing
night
time
animals
4 girls and 2
boys
in
different
discussion on
night
time
animals
Discussion
There was a key question raised for my research which I illustrated at the beginning
of my report; I asked will a ‘topic related’ home corner have a more positive effect
on a child’s learning and interest on that topic when compared with an open, non
controlled home corner where children are completely free to create their own role
play? My hypothesis was that the ‘topic related’ home corner will have a more
noticeable and positive impact on the children’s learning as it will increase interest
and knowledge on the current class topic.
After analysing my findings and research I feel that my hypothesis correlates with
the data and research found and presented. There was a noticeable increase in both
topic related discussions and minutes of topic related play from the beginning of the
study – where the children were exploring in an uncontrolled, manipulated home
corner which was not related the class topic when compared with the end of the
study where the home corner was controlled and had been created to relate to the
topic. This suggests a greater interest and knowledge on the class topic ‘All Creatures
Great and Small’ due to the influence of a topic related home corner.
I feel the home corner is an extremely important area of the continuous provision in
the Early Years Foundation Stage as it allows children to learn through play where
they are ‘exploring, imitating, and pretending’ (Johnstone and Nahmad-Williams
2010). I agree with the findings of Schmidt (2012) and Bayley and Featherstone
(2011) who reinforce the importance of play and a ‘play based area’ in the EYFS and
how the notion of play is crucial to children discovering reading and writing on their
own. I strongly believe that the role of the home corner and role-play within the
EYFS setting is vital and positively affects children’s learning and therefore their
progress.
I also concur with Beckley’s (2012) recommendations of the effectiveness of allowing
the children ‘to develop’ the role-play area themselves. From this work and study, I
allowed the children to suggest and participate in helping create our class home
corner, and contribute ideas to what ‘resources they need’. I feel this had a positive
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impact on the results found in my research as it sparked an initial interest and
excitement for not only the new themed home corner but also the current class
topic. It would be interesting to discover if the results would have been the same or
similar if the children had not participated in helping to shape and design the home
corner.
However, as previously discussed and from own experience, in the Early Years
Foundation Stage the ‘home corner’ can become a place where purely free-play
takes place with no learning and sometimes can cause behavioural problems within
the class. The effectiveness of the ‘home corner’ or ‘role play area’ on a child’s
learning has come under scrutiny over the years for this reason. Therefore I do agree
with David (1996) views on the importance of adult intervention and how the vital
role of observation in the EYFS should not be forgotten.
Bruce (1991) suggested a range of strategies to encourage rich free-flow play in the
EYFS but with optimal learning and progress for children, among these are
observation and recording. The adult who spends time ‘closely watching and
recording the choices which children are making’ in different areas in the classroom,
with regard to a child’s selection of activity, interpretation and interactions with
others, learns far more about the child's learning than ‘one who spends time focused
on outcomes alone’. However, problems can arise as it is this process itself that can
demand a deep involvement and interaction in a variety of ways from the adult in an
EYFS classroom – which isn’t always possible, as children can and will invite
conversation with or participation from the adults around them - particularly in what
Bruce calls free-flow play (1991). The observation, recording and reporting of
creative behaviour or role-play poses other particular problems stated by Wood and
Atfield (1996), who explore assessment issues in play. These include the need to
ensure ‘observation of children alone, together and with adults; and sensitivity to
the patterns of children's self-initiated activities’.
I previously analysed Broadhead’s (2010) research which indicates that children’s
problem solving and learning is more evident in home corner or role play areas
where resources are more open-ended rather than controlled or ‘adult led or
15
initiated’. Nutbrown (1994) additionally supported this of Broadhead’s and stated
that objects within a home corner or role play area should be ‘open and flexible’ and
not controlled so children can transform them independently into whatever their
‘ideas, imagination and experiences want them to be’. However, my research project
results contradict these findings as the positive results were found after the home
corner was controlled or ‘adult manipulated’, as there was a noticeable increase in
both topic related discussions and minutes of topic related play from the beginning
of the study. Additionally, when questioning participants on their class topic; there
was a clear difference in the amount of right answers given when comparing the first
(non-controlled) day’s answers to the fourth and last day’s answers. Only 30% of the
participants answered correctly on the first day of observations in the non controlled
or themed home corner, when compared then with 80% correctly answered on day
four - which suggests that the children’s learning is in fact more evident and
progressive where the areas and resources are controlled by an adult in the EYFS.
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Conclusion and recommendations
In support of existing research, this research project indicates that enhancing the
‘home corner’ within the Early Year’s Foundation Stage to a ‘topic related’ theme;
does have a positive influence on children’s enthusiasm and knowledge on the
current class topic, and therefore positively effecting their learning and progress.
The child’s enthusiasm and attentiveness for the class topic is increased because of
the exploration, chance for social interaction and role-play opportunities that a
home corner area provides. However, this research project indicates that this
development area within the continuous provision needs to supported and
controlled by an adult; indicating the crucial need for adult intervention in children’s
learning through play.
I also agree that the home corner within the EYFS needs to be adapted, developed
and enhanced on a regular basis to continuously engage children and promote
autonomous learning.
One implication and limitation to the study was the sample size of the project using
participants from not only one school but also one class; due to the nature of the
small-scale research project the findings cannot be deemed universally applicable.
The research also had to be conducted in a relatively small time scale due to the
school’s timetable and other extenuating factors, therefore the research cannot
decisively state the findings a larger time-scale might have generated different
results, and therefore both affecting the validity of the research project. If I were to
conduct this research project again I would conduct the observations over a larger
time period, over different schools, with a larger universally representative sample
of participants; in order to determine whether any trends or patterns emerged.
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I feel this research project has highlighted some areas for new possible questions
and research. One area that could be researched following this assignment is further
investigation and study on Beckley’s (2012) recommendations of the effectiveness of
allowing children to help design, shape or contribute to their own home corner or
role play area in the class. As stated earlier, it would be interesting to discover if the
positive results of the research project would have been the same or similar if the
children had not participated in helping to shape and design the home corner.
References
Beckley, P. (2012) Learning in Early Childhood. A Whole Child Approach from birth to
8. Sage Publications.
Johnstone, J. & Nahmad-Williams, L. (2010) Early Childhood Studies: Principles and
Practice. Routledge.
Croll, P. (1986) Systematic Classroom Observation. Lewes, Falmer Press
Bayley, R. & Featherstone, S. (2011) Child-initiated Learning: Hundreds of ideas for
independent learning in the Early Years (Practitioners' Guides).
Glenn et al (2006) Meanings of Play amoung children. Sage.
David M,E. (1996) Children and school-based research: ‘Informed consent’ or
‘educated consent’? British Educational Research Journal 27(3): 347–365
Miller, E. (2008) Children’s perceptions of play experiences and play preferences: A
qualitative study. The American Journal of Occupation Therapy 62(4).
Meadows and Cashdan, (1988) Changing Curriculum for Early Childhood Education in
England. Cambridge University.
Edwards and Knight (1994) Effective Early Years Education: Teaching Young Children.
McGraw-Hill Education.
Broadhead, P. (2010) Play and learning in the early years: from research to practice.
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Nutbrown, C. (1994) Parents’ Roles in Children’s Literacy Development. Open
Univeristy Press
Moyles, J. (2000) Excellence of Play. Open University Press.
Vygotsky, L. (1978). Mind in Society: The Development of Higher Psychological
Processes MA: Harvard University Press
Vygotsky, L.S. (1978). Thought and Language. New York: Wile
Donaldson. M. (1978) Children's Minds. London: Fontana Press.
Wragg, E.C. (1994) An Introduction to Classroom Observation. London, Routledge
Cohen, L.(2004) Research Methods in Education. London, Routeledge and Kegan Paul
Jeffrey, B. & Woods, A (2004). Teaching creatively and teaching for creativity:
distinctions and relationships. Educational Studies, 30(1), pp. 77–87.
Simpson, M & Tuson, J. (2003) Using observations in small scale research. Scottish
Council for Research in Scotland
Denscombe, M. (2010) The Good Research Guide: for small-scale social research
projects. New York.
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Appendix
Appendix One
- Home corner planning and mind mapping from with children
Appendix Two to Six
-
Observational Sheets from Day One to Day Four
Appendix Seven
- Photo of topic themed home corner
Appendix Eight
- Ethical guidelines form
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