Copyright

Egan, Suzanne M.; Pope, Jennifer; Beatty, Chloé; Hoyne, Clara;

Published On

2023-06-01

Page Range

pp. 265–284

Language

  • English

Print Length

20 pages

Keywords

  • Covid-19 measures
  • children's play
  • Irish context
  • parental responses
  • online survey
  • first lockdown
  • Spring 2020
  • types of play
  • home play environments
  • parental facilitation of play
  • physical resources
  • social support
  • inclusion of virus and restrictions in play
  • bio-ecological lens
  • research findings
  • pandemic-related information in play
  • corona chasing
  • LEGO ventilators
  • bio-ecological approach

12. How Young Children Played during the Covid-19 Lockdown in 2020 in Ireland

Findings from the Play and Learning in the Early Years (PLEY) Covid-19 Study

Chapter of: Play in a Covid Frame: Everyday Pandemic Creativity in a Time of Isolation(pp. 265–284)
The Covid-19 measures put in place by governments around the world to restrict the movement of people and limit the spread of the virus also impacted on children’s play. The importance of play in children’s lives has been well documented and research shows it plays a role in all aspects of development, including physical, cognitive and socio-emotional development. This chapter reports some key findings on changes in young children’s play in an Irish context based on parental responses to an online survey, gathered during the first Covid-19 lockdown in Spring 2020. Over five hundred parents of children aged one to ten years responded to the survey during May and June 2020, approximately two months into the first lockdown in Ireland, when all schools, preschools, playgrounds and non-essential businesses were closed. The findings of the survey shed light on the types and amounts of play that young Irish children engaged in during this time. Young children in Ireland spent a considerable amount of time in multiple types of play, in rich home play environments with parents who valued and facilitated their play, both in terms of the physical resources they provided and the social support they engaged in while playing with their child. The findings also highlight the inclusion of the virus and restrictions in all types of children’s play, with approximately one-third of the children bringing pandemic-related information into their play (e.g. corona chasing, LEGO ventilators). Interpreting these results and other international research through a bio-ecological lens offers a good approach to make sense of, and learn from, these findings.

Contributors

Suzanne M. Egan

(author)
Professor of Psychology at University of Limerick
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7238-6529

Suzanne Egan is a researcher and lecturer in the Department of Psychology, Mary Immaculate College (MIC), Limerick. She graduated with a PhD in psychology from Trinity College Dublin and also holds postgraduate qualifications in cognitive science and in statistics. Her research examines the processes involved in imagination, thinking and reasoning, and the factors that support development in young children. Suzanne is the director of the Cognition, Development and Learning Research Lab in MIC, which focuses on the impact of playful activities on early development, such as reading, screen time and outdoor play. Recently she has been involved in the evaluation of the Bookseed scheme, an infant book gifting programme in Limerick. She is currently co-chair of the Children’s Research Network, an all-Ireland network which brings together researchers, practitioners and policy makers.

Jennifer Pope

(author)
Lecturer in the Department of Reflective Pedagogy and Early Childhood Studies at Mary Immaculate College

Jennifer Pope, PhD is an early childhood expert, lecturing in the Department of Reflective Pedagogy and Early Childhood Studies in Mary Immaculate College, Limerick, Ireland. She graduated with a PhD in paediatric epidemiology in 2006. Jennifer’s research examines the impact of early life experiences on health and well-being. She is passionate about the importance of early childhood and the need to address inequities and promote children’s well-being in the earliest years. Jennifer has a particular interest in the professional development of ECCE students and in researching how children’s well-being is promoted from an ecological perspective, including the role of the outdoors, play and the early learning environment.

Chloé Beatty

(author)
PhD researcher in the Department of Psychology at Mary Immaculate College
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0654-8371

Chloé Beatty is currently a PhD researcher in the Department of Psychology in Mary Immaculate College (MIC), Limerick. She graduated with a BSc in applied psychology from the Institute of Art, Design, and Technology (Dún Laoghaire). Her research places a particular emphasis on early screen exposure and engagement, and its impact on socio-emotional and cognitive development in young children. She is also a member of the Cognition, Development and Learning Research Lab in MIC.

Clara Hoyne

(author)
PhD graduate from the Department of Psychology at Mary Immaculate College

Clara Hoyne recently completed her PhD at the Department of Psychology in Mary Immaculate College, Limerick, Ireland, and is a member of the Cognition, Development and Learning Research Lab in the department. Her main research interests include early child development, the home learning environment and reading with infants and young children. Clara is also part of the evaluation team of an infant book-gifting programme, Bookseed, which was supported by the JP McManus Foundation and Children’s Books Ireland.