Purpose: This paper aims to examine unexpected arrivals of adult-oriented digital media in the playful storied environments of Grades 1 and 2 classrooms and the possibilities such unsettling literacies may offer. Design/methodology/approach: Posthuman perspectives provide this study's theoretical grounding and methodological approach.…

This article is a condensed version of the author's research which explores the relationship between imaginative play and creativity in education, and examines the structures, approaches, benefits, and obstacles surrounding the topic of imaginative play and creativity. The photo collection is a reflection on the ponderings throughout the author's…

In Manitoba, more than half of marriages end with divorce. Many of these families include children. This article addresses the need for school counsellors to understand the impact that divorce has on children's lives. Children require a method to deal with unresolved feelings related to divorce. A school counsellor can support children through the…

In 2021, more than 80 million people worldwide will have been forced to flee their homes. Upon arrival in their new country, families may endure numerous hardships, yet succumbing to these challenges is not their single story. To understand how migrant-background and refugee-background children imagine more liveable futures beyond social and…

Building from the concept of verbing mathematics as a culturally consistent and enabling mathematics education practice for Mi'kmaw learners, the authors present an elementary multiplication lesson affectionately named "Sets of, Rows of, Jumps of". Through examination of this specific set of tasks emerging notions of structuring, play,…

Autonomy -- acting volitionally with a sense of choice -- is a crucial right for children. Given parents' pivotal position in their child's autonomy development, we examined how parental autonomy support and children's need for autonomy were negotiated and manifested in the context of children's independent mobility -- children's ability to play,…

The purpose of this study was to describe the daily activities of Canadian children outside of school. Participants were parents of N = 189 children (90 boys, 99 girls) in grades 1 to 3. The What Your Child Did Today parental telephone interview protocol was developed as a daily log of both the type and social context of children's activities.…

Although scholars have researched Chinese parents' perspectives on play pedagogy, few investigate the differences between parents of preschoolers and early primary schoolers, non-immigrant and immigrant parents. The present study employs the theoretical framework of parental ethnotheories to describe parental understanding and concerns about the…

French Immersion instruction has often focused on the development of oral language as the primary method of early literacy learning. Manitoba Education endorses this focus with its curricular emphasis on oral language acquisition before formal reading and writing instruction. This article examines the role of early years French immersion teachers…

Recess can be a valuable and significant experience in children's lives, providing opportunities for outdoor free play and engagement with peers; however, children experiencing disability often withdraw or are excluded during recess. The recess context has received little attention from an inclusion perspective and the voices of children…

Purpose: This study assessed students' levels and associations between recess enjoyment, positive affect, environmental factors, and activity preferences overall and as a function of gender and developmental level. Methods: An online survey was used to gather data from 464 students in Grades 4-8 from nine elementary schools in southwestern…

OPAL -- Outdoor Play and Learning, in collaboration with Earth Day Canada, is a national program that encourages outdoor play in public schools across Canada. This paper focuses on the implementation of OPAL in an elementary school in Toronto. The initial implementation strategies of the program are discussed, which include efforts to create a…

The effects of prior encodings of manipulatives (red and blue plastic chips) on children's ability to use them as representations of quantity were tested. First graders (N = 73) were assigned to four conditions in which the encoding of plastic chips was experimentally manipulated. All children then participated in an addition activity that relied…

Young children who are English Language Learners or have special learning needs can find it difficult to communicate in kindergarten classrooms. Open-ended tablet applications offer multi-modal tools for these children to communicate their ideas, engage with others, and demonstrate and develop their knowledge and skills. They position students as…

This qualitative report is part of a larger action research study on a topic that is often overlooked in school improvement efforts: Recess and its influence on children's social interactions and developmental trajectories. We introduced The Recess Project into seven lower-socioeconomic elementary schools in southern Ontario. Our intention for…