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What can we learn from Puzzles?
Panga/Puzzles come in many different shapes, sizes, themes, colours and challenging levels. Here at BestStart Abacus, our tamariki love to take on the challenge of completing floor puzzles, which can be a little more difficult than your average puzzle. Puzzles can be a real brain teaser and a great way for children to test their patience as they try to manipulate each piece to fit in with another.
They provide teachers with the opportunity to work in small groups, usually 1 or 2 children at a time, and really engage in child-led learning as they provide support, encouragement, and praise. Puzzles are an enriching area of play with many benefits for our children and assist in the development of hand-eye coordination, spatial ability, social development, memory skills, and problem-solving strategies.
Hand-eye Coordination - As tamariki are figuring out where each piece goes they are learning to use their hands and eyes at the same time to fit the piece in.
Social Development - Our tamariki love working together with their peers to take on the challenge of completing a puzzle. This helps to develop turn-taking skills, cooperation, and communication between the group.
Problem-Solving Skills - Tamariki are developing the skills of figuring out how they are going to complete this puzzle. Teachers can assist tamariki by suggesting they turn each piece over, help tamariki to identify the edges to complete the outline first, or search for similar colours, objects, or shapes within the pieces.
Puzzles are so much fun and provide our tamariki with hours of learning and development!