Short description: Because gifted learners need appropriate academic challenge in a world seeking innovators, entrepreneurs, and out-of-the-box thinkers, educators may want to look to the principles of play. This session shares the impact of open-ended "loose parts" play and the intersection of the playwork mindset, maker culture, and best practices in gifted education at a diverse SEM-inspired public magnet school.
Learning Outcomes: Participants will:
Learn strategies to integrate more student-led, open-ended experiences into the classroom
Learn how more open-ended, playwork-inspired experiences remove the "ceiling" of teacher-directed activities, allowing gifted learners to pursue deeper, more personalized learning
Learn the social-emotional benefits of open-ended exploration and play