“Do you know what that animal on the magazine is?” I asked a 3-year-old as he enjoyed his snack, waiting to be picked up after school.
He shrugged and replied, “No.”
With a smile, I said, “It’s a sloth.” He nodded slightly before heading off to play with his classmates.
Later, when most children had gone home, he picked up the same magazine. Curious, I asked again if he knew what the animal was. To my surprise, he answered confidently, “A sloth!”
At that moment, I was flabbergasted. The child I thought hadn’t been listening not only remembered what I said but could identify the animal. I was reminded never to underestimate a child’s ability to pick up new knowledge, no matter how young. Children are listening, observing, and absorbing - even when it doesn’t look like it.
As teachers, we play a vital role in scaffolding their learning: breaking down big ideas into simple, meaningful experiences, and modeling what it means to be curious, respectful, and kind. Children at this age imitate what they see and hear around them, so our words and actions matter deeply.
One way I scaffolded learning recently was by introducing the concept of camouflage through play. Knowing my preschoolers are very active, I set up a game of hide-and-seek. Each child decorated a simple paper-plate mask with natural materials they found around them - leaves, flowers, twigs. Then, with great excitement, they ran off to find the best hiding spots where their masks could “blend in.”
Round after round, we observed who was easier to spot and who wasn’t, and then talked about how animals like squirrels and stick insects use camouflage to hide from predators. The children were not only engaged but also contributed their own examples of animals that camouflage. The joy on their faces showed that the concept had truly sunk in.
This is the power of play. When children are interested and having fun, they remember. When they are active participants, they learn deeply.
As Fred Rogers once said:
“Play is often talked about as if it were a relief from serious learning. But for children play is serious learning. Play is really the work of childhood.”
On this Teacher’s Day, I’m reminded that our role as teachers is not to lecture, but to guide - to set up opportunities for discovery, scaffold ideas in ways children can grasp, and trust in their immense capacity to learn through play.