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Resource Library

Welcome to our library of play-filled resources! This resource library contains a range of short articles, blog pieces and videos to summarise findings from our research, alongside links to our latest academic publications.

On this page you can browse resources created by the PEDAL team. You can also use one or more of the filters below to search for the resources most relevant to your interests.

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Y: You and me: Parent child playfulness

What are some of the everyday ways parents can spend playful time with their children while at home?

Z: Zest! Motivation and playful learning in the classroom

How can teachers harness children's inner drive to learn?

Parent Cooperative Early Learning: The Playcentre Approach

Whānau Tupu Ngātahii means families growing together. Paul Crowhurst tells us more about Playcentre, a family-led, play-based approach to early childhood education in New Zealand.

Play and infant interactions with caregivers

What are the benefits of quality playful interactions with your infant?

Play and Pretence

What is pretend play and how does it link to a child’s emotional development?

Play and Self-regulation

Self-regulation helps a child guide their thoughts, emotions and behaviours to accomplish a goal – how does play support this important area of development?

Play, Self-regulation, Executive Function and the Classroom Context

How and why do playful approaches to teaching support the development of self-regulation?

David Whitebread Memorial Lecture 2022: Theory and Research on Self-Regulated Learning Meet Real Life in Classrooms

PEDAL and the Whitebread family come together annually for the David Whitebread Memorial Lecture to celebrate the memory of Dr David Whitebread, PEDAL’s founder and a pioneer in early childhood development research. This is a recording of the inaugural David Whitebread Memorial Lecture, given by Professor Nancy Perry from the University of British Columbia in […]

Power of Play: Evidence on Playful Early Learning in Bangladesh and BRAC’s PlayBook Launch

Early childhood is a critical time in a child’s development and life. When play is integrated into how we care for and educate young children, it promotes their development and helps them grow into adaptable, resilient, socially and emotionally literate adults who can navigate the world and overcome the adversities of poverty, crisis and conflict […]

Agency in Play: Making Space for Children’s Agency With Learning Through Play

This short animation summarises a new theoretical paper written by the Play in Schools & Learning team that explains the role of play in supporting children’s agency in their learning. How can you make space for children’s agency in their learning? By including play! Play develops children’s motivation and self-regulation, both of which support children’s […]

Evidence-based interventions in the first 1001 days: A PEDAL panel discussion

PEDAL and the First 1001 Days Movement hosted a fascinating lunchtime panel considering how to ensure our youngest children and their families receive the most appropriate, timely and effective intervention to support their health and development. Professor Mike Robling (Director of Population Health Trials, University of Cardiff) and Professor Paul Ramchandani (LEGO Professor of Play, […]

School Break Times & Young People’s Social Lives in England

In this lunchtime webinar, PEDAL was joined by Dr Ed Baines from the UCL’s Institute of Education. School breaktimes are important social play settings for children and young people. In the past decade there have been changes to schools and education in England, reports of increases in structured school clubs, and concerns about school food, […]

Play in Green Spaces: A PEDAL panel discussion

Adults instinctively feel that playing outside is good for children, but what is actually known about the benefits of play in green spaces? As cities around the world continue to expand, more children are growing up without access to the countryside, or even to parks and gardens. Playtime takes place indoors or in the built […]

Parenting and Early Childhood in the Pandemic

TEDxCambridgeUniversity’s event ‘The New Normal’ featured a talk from PEDAL PhD candidate Sabilah Eboo Alwani. This is a recording of Sabilah’s talk on Parenting and Early Childhood in the Pandemic. Sabilah’s research examines the relationship between parenting and early childhood development, including the themes of resilience and play. She is a longstanding practitioner in the fields […]

PEDAL September Speaker Series: Play in the Pandemic

This webinar was part of our September Speaker Series, recorded in September 2020. These lunchtime sessions aimed to bring together academics, practitioners & policymakers to discuss some of play research’s key issues virtually during the COVID-19 pandemic.  Professor Sara Baker was joined in this webinar by Helen Dodd, Professor of Child Psychology at the University […]