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Initially, I believed that play was not a part of learning; it was just a way to have fun or a break from study, as I was raised this way. Play was seen as something that needs to be limited in favour of academic tasks. However, through my engagement in early childhood education, I started to understand that play is very meaningful and important for learning and growing.

According to the Early Years Learning Framework (Australia Government Department of Education, 2022), play-based learning allows children to improve their critical thinking, build understanding, and test ideas. The research also highlights that children engage in play with intention; they make choices, solve problems, and develop self-awareness. This helps me believe that play is a tool of learning for educators in daily life as well as for children. Play can be described as a development tool that inspires creativity, thoughts, and problem-solving in daily life.

This change in how I see play connects with socio-cultural theory by Vygotsky and Rogoff. Sociocultural theories explain that learning happens through relationships and in the environments we grow up in (Nolan & Raban, 2015). Rogoff (1990) mentions that children learn by joining in shared activities within their culture. Now, I see play as one of these shared activities where people learn together, whether children, adults, families, or even in the wider community.

My previous thought about play was quite different from these theories. But now my view has expanded and matches more closely with EYLF and Vygotsky’s idea that believe learning happens when we interact with others. I don’t see play as a waste of time anymore. Instead, I see it as a powerful and meaningful way to learn at any age, even in my own daily life.

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One afternoon when I was bored and I decided to play with my “Dobby” lego set that had been in my closet since March. I started with the pieces by shape and size, then I went on with the instructions on the paper. From the instruction paper, I went step by step and had to think about how the lego pieces would go together, turn them, and keep the structure from falling so down. I even tried by changing colours and making small decisions on how it would look.

The first thing came out in my mind was not about maths. However, I recognise the process I was using is all related to basic math ideas such as space reasoning, measure, sequence, pattern, and solving. My playing with the lego made these skills work in a natural and meaningful way.

This experience is consistent with the EYLF(2022), which states that play-based learning promotes critical thinking, creativity, and deliberate participation. It also highlights that play enables us to make decisions, solve problems, and gain understanding as I engaged the entire processes throughout the activity. The concept of intentional play shows that learning can be achieved through hands-on experience like this.

According to Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory, learning occurs through common thinking, interaction, and cultural means. Vygotsky’s concept of the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) highlights that people grow by tasks engagement that are just beyond their independent level but still need some assistance (Nolan & Raban, 2015). In this situation, the Lego guides me by helping me to expand my skills as well as allowing me to explore on my own and improve my creativity.

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There is a day off from work and I still needed to get through the house chores, I felt overwhelmed and lazy to move as I hadn’t had time to properly relax in weeks. Poor energy and motivation won out over me, so I started to turn on my favourite jazz music. As the music played, I started rock to the beat and soon began to be dancing while I cleaned. This made my routine chores became more enjoyable and stimulating. I notice that employing music is more than just entertaining myself. I was also managing my emotions and turning an ordinary routine into a joyful interaction with technology.

This moment taught me that play in adults is not always a game, but can also exist in small, ordinary moments. It was spontaneous and unstructured, bit it was joyful, liberating, and significant. Sutton-Smith (2008) mentions that play with music and dance could bring life to the moment, it feels more alive even just for a little moment. His ideas helped me understand how play has the ability to infuse energy and passion into daily situations.

The Early Childhood Learning Framework (EYLF, 2022) also supports the notion that play promotes emotional well-being, creativity, and expression when combined with technology such as music. Nolan and Raban (2015) explain Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory, which demonstrates how cultural tools such as technology and music might transform the way we think, feel and act. Music helped me regulate my emotions back then and made a mundane job became more vibrant and entertaining.

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The special spider nearby my houseplant.

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Moment: Observing small changes in my indoor plants

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Moment: Observing small changes in my indoor plants

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When I was doing the house chores, I was planning to bring my houseplant for sunbathing. As I looked closer, something rare caught my eye as I saw a tuft green spikes on the surface of the soil. I wondered if it was a moss or mold, and whether I needed to be concerned about it. Then, I saw a little spider and wonder how it got there. Why is it there, in that specific area? These little observations brought me into a moment of quiet exploration and reflection.

Even thought I was not doing a formal investigation, I found that I was doing science play by exploring, questioning, and reflecting in my surroundings. The Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF,2022) identified that play can be discovery, exploration, and interaction with natural material, all of which are essential tools of scientific thinking. What reminded me of this experience is that play in daily life can be happen anytime, anywhere, and we learn things and gain knowledge from play.

My experiences have strong connections with the research on scientific learning in bush kindergarten environments. Observation, inquiry, and exploration were encouraged by the natural environment, and this led to learning among people (International Journal of Innovation in Science and Mathematics Education, 2020). I like how people were attracted to scientific thought merely by observing changes in my daily environment.

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Figure 2.  Photo of indoor plant showing green growth and nearby spider—an everyday environment offering spontaneous scientific play through observation and curiosity.

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Figure 2.  Photo of indoor plant showing green growth and nearby spider—an everyday environment offering spontaneous scientific play through observation and curiosity.

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Figure 1. Lego Dobby model built at home. This image represents the mathematical play involved in sequencing, spatial planning, and problem-solving

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Figure 1. Lego Dobby model built at home. This image represents the mathematical play involved in sequencing, spatial planning, and problem-solving

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Living on stolen land means acknowledging that the place where I live, learn, and connect was taken from its Traditional Owners without a treaty or consent. As I’ve learned from this unit, this truth should not be neglected or dismissed as history, instead it continues to affect the lives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people today. I reside on Woiwurrung Country, the home of the Wurundjeri people, and this realisation has changed the way I see my presence and obligations.

A visit to Alfred Nicholas Memorial Gardens gave me a chance to learn with nature. As I sketch quietly under the trees, I felt a strong connection to the land, we are not just being on the land but being with it. I figured what Hamm and Boucher (2017) called “learning to be affected,” in which being still and in thought lets us feel and listen to the land. The author mentioned that a place matters when it is sensed through emotions and story and not just seen (Iorio, 2017). That day, the land was not just a place, it was a teacher.

This realisation has changed my view on responsibility. The research shows that reconciliation is about showing respect through real actions, not just to look nice (Hamm & Boucher, 2017). To acknowledge the Country, I want to start with little things like learning more about local Aboriginal history and adding Aboriginal perspective into my everyday life. For me, truth-telling and reconciliation start with listening, learning, and showing respect in how I live and work each day

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·        Australian Government Department of Education. (2022). Belonging, being & becoming: The Early Years Learning Framework for Australia (V2.0). https://www.education.gov.au/early-years-learning-framework

·        International Journal of Innovation in Science and Mathematics Education. (2020). Science learning in bush kinders, 28(3), 1–13.

·        Nolan, A., & Raban, B. (2015). Theories into perspective. In Theories into practice: Understanding and rethinking our work with young children and the EYLF (pp. 5–14). Teaching Solutions. https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/vu/detail.action?docID=6686419

·        Sutton-Smith, B. (n.d.). Play theory: A personal journey and new thoughts. In VU ECE6009 Play Theory Unit Readings. Victoria University.

·        Hamm, C., & Boucher, K. (2017). Engaging with place: Foregrounding Aboriginal perspectives in early childhood education. In N. Yelland & D. Frantz Bentley (Eds.), Found in translation: Connecting reconceptualist thinking with early childhood education practices (1st ed., pp. 58–75). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315165042-5

·        Iorio, J. M., Hamm, C., Parnell, W., & Quintero, E. (2017). Place, matters of concern, and pedagogy: Making impactful connections with our planet. Journal of Early Childhood Teacher Education, 38(2), 121–135. https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eric&AN=EJ1145295&site=eds-live&authtype=shib&custid=s1145751