PLAY IS THE WAY® is a practical methodology for teaching social & emotional skills using:

​A unique program of physically interactive games (both require and develop personal and social competencies).
5 guiding concepts (embedded through classroom activities and serve as a moral compass to help children do what they believe is right as opposed to doing what they are told). 
A specific and empowering self-reflective language (which helps children to master their behavior in preparation for a responsible life in free society). 

PLAY IS THE WAY® OBJECTIVES

​​To help the staff, students and parents of Elementary Schools create a
safe learning environment in which students train to be independent,
self-regulating, self-motivated learners in persistent pursuit of their personal best and able to get along with each other.  To help develop students of strong character and decency with the social and emotional competencies to live and learn well. To cultivate empathetic students, considerate of themselves, each other and the world in which they live
​with sound and good reasons for the things they say and do.
A COMMON PROFILE OF PLAY IS THE WAY® SCHOOLS
  • Have a whole school, long term commitment to the development of positive social behavior to assist and benefit learning and life.
  • Understand the value of play as a brain compatible way of learning. 
  • Add the program into curriculum and not onto it, by creating a whole school culture that supports social and emotional learning.
  • Accept that crucial to the whole process is the role modeling by all staff of adult behaviour that exemplifies social and emotional competency.
  • Have staff willing to step out of their personal comfort zones to acquire new skills and capabilities.
  • Find ways and means to build or improve the working partnership with parents and carers so they can support and assist the social and emotional development of students.
  • Understand that schools are the hubs of communities and the agents for positive change within communities. They are not the victims of their clientele and most actively demonstrate the meaning of community by the manner in which they live and learn within the school grounds.
  • Create a safe and supportive staff room in which discussion, opinion, difficulties, successes, concerns and queries can be openly aired and help freely asked for.
"No program - no matter how sound it is - can not have impact 
if its essential elements are not used."
Yap, K., Aldersebaes, I., Railsback, J., Shaughnessy, J., & Speth, T. (2000)
THE USUAL IMPLEMENTATION PROCESS
  • Whole school one-day PLAY IS THE WAY® workshop.
  • Staff meeting for discussion and feedback soon after the one-day workshop.
  • Purchase of required PLAY IS THE WAY® written resources for every teacher.
  • Set a start date for the program – Usually 2 to 3 weeks after Pro D. This allows staff to do required reading and preparation.
  • If possible, conduct an evaluation of the pro-social behavior of students prior to the start of PLAY IS THE WAY®.
  • Acquisition of simple and readily available games equipment and the preparation of games kits for all classrooms.
  • Creating a timetable that permits all classes to participate in the required number of games sessions per week for the required number of minutes.
  • Ensuring all teachers have an appropriate space in which to conduct their games sessions.
  • Whole school begins the program.
  • Administration team honoring staff commitment to the program by the regular observation of games sessions.
  • Staff meeting after completion of first or second week of program to ensure fidelity of implementation by using Fidelity of Implementation checklist.
  • Further evaluation of the pro-social behavior of students at intervals determined by those conducting the evaluation.


PLAY IS THE WAY®  IMPLEMENTATION GUIDE - FREE

Please read our Implementation Guide to gain a deeper understanding of the Play Is The Way® implementation process.  

RESEARCH ABOUT PLAY IS THE WAY

Following is research specifically conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of Play is the Way® for the development of personal and social capabilities in a primary school setting.

The sample size for each project was small.  Our hope is that the positive results will eventually lead to research on a larger scale.

We trust that educators with an interest in social and emotional learning will find the research informative.

  • Plut, M (2015) - Developing Emotional Regulation in the Classroom Using Play is the Way®  (Masters Action Research Study) Kamloops, BC Gonzaga University. CLICK TO READ
  • McInnes, E., Whitington, V. & Diamond, A. (2013). Developing Trauma Informed Pedagogy in a year 2/3 Classroom. CLICK TO READ
  • Carter, S.C. (2013). Is Play the Way? Investigating the effect of an experiential learning program on self-awareness (Unpublished undergraduate thesis). The University of Queensland, Australia. CLICK TO READ
  • Street, H., Hoppe, D., Kingsbury, D., & Ma, T. (2004). The Game Factory: Using Cooperative Games to Promote Pro-social Behaviour Among Children. Australian Journal of Educational & Developmental Psychology, 4, 97-109  (Please note: Play Is The Way was formerly know as The Game Factory) CLICK TO READ


Following is some additional research on various and important elements of social and emotional learning:

  • Moffitt, T., Poulton, R., & Caspi, A. (2013). Lifelong impact of early self-control: Childhood self-discipline predicts adult quality of life. American Scientist, 101, 352–359. A clearly written and user-friendly overview of self-control and its consequences.  CLICK TO READ

  • Payton, J., Weissberg, R. P., Durlak, J. A., Dymnicki, A. B., Taylor, R. D., Schellinger, K. B., & Pachan, M. (2008). The positive impact of social and emotional learning for kindergarten to eighth-grade students: Findings from three scientific reviews . Chicago, IL: Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning.  CLICK TO READ

  • This 11-page report, published in 2013, is unique for its focus on the current status of social and emotional learning in Canada. Commissioned by the Carthy Foundation and the Max Bell Foundation, it provides summary statistics on Canadian children’s behavioral and emotional problems (e.g., mental health issues, bullying) and related school outcomes (e.g., academic performance, school drop-out rates).  This brief also includes findings from interviews with 23 experts in the field of social and emotional learning and practice in Canada. The issues discussed include receptivity and awareness of SEL in Canada, environmental factors and trends that influence the development of SEL in Canada, barriers to advancement and gaps in the knowledge of SEL in Canada, and finally, opportunities for advancing SEL in Canada. (Source: The University Of British Columbia - Social & Emotional Learning Resource Finder)  CLICK TO READ

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