Play, Early Language and Communication

Children’s play can be observed as both a social and a solitary activity (see Chapter 3). Piaget’s research using a developmental psychology approach considers stages of play, beginning with children’s solitary engagement in play and developing in social complexity the older the child becomes. This suggests that children become increasingly intelligent in interacting with others as they become older – the more social the child is, the more cognitively advanced they are. Research subsequent to the work of Piaget has also suggested that children’s social interactions in play require very complex thought and intelligence, but that even very young children are able to competently manage their social worlds independent of adult intervention (Corsaro & Everitt, 2024). There is increasing understanding that toddlers and young children intelligently co-produce play activity in their everyday lives with peers, but what is less understood is how they do this. The following transcripts and discussion aim to shed light on the process of children’s early play through investigating how they use their verbal language and non-verbal gesture in social play with peers and adults.