In a bustling classroom in Bengaluru, young children are huddled around a sandbox brimming with colorful tools and toys. Their teacher has given a simple prompt: use your imagination to build something. Riya, a spirited 7-year-old, is constructing a tower. Nearby, Aman is trying to piece together a toy car.
From the outside, it might seem like nothing more than a cheerful play session. But beneath the surface, something deeper is taking place—students are problem-solving, negotiating, creating. This is play-based learning in action: a powerful educational approach that nurtures not only academic skills but emotional, physical, and social development too.
In classrooms across India and the world, play-based learning is gaining momentum as an antidote to the rigidity of traditional education. Its foundation lies in one core idea: children learn best when they are allowed to explore, imagine, and lead their own learning journeys.
What is play-based learning?
At its core, play-based learning is an approach that uses child-led, exploratory activities—like games, storytelling, and puzzles—as a primary vehicle for learning. It rejects rote memorization and passive instruction, and instead allows children to learn through doing. It doesn’t abandon structure; rather, it integrates learning goals within playful activities that are developmentally appropriate and responsive to children’s needs.
Why is it transformative?
1. It strengthens cognitive development.
Games that require counting or sequencing help build early numeracy. Storytelling enhances vocabulary and comprehension. These hands-on experiences anchor abstract concepts in the real world, making learning more meaningful and memorable.
2. It cultivates social and emotional intelligence.
When children play together, they learn to collaborate, share, negotiate, and resolve conflict. These aren’t just playground skills; they are critical life skills, honed in the safety of a classroom where trial and error is part of the process.
3. It fuels creativity and critical thinking.
By engaging in open-ended play, children learn to ask questions, devise solutions, and think beyond the obvious. In a world where innovation is currency, this skill set is essential.
4. It supports physical development.
Play-based environments encourage movement like jumping, building, running which improves motor skills and stamina. In contrast, traditional methods that require long hours at a desk often hamper both focus and well-being.
Why now?
The global shift toward play-based learning is rooted in decades of research. Studies from the OECD and UNICEF have repeatedly shown that learning through play leads to stronger academic outcomes, better emotional health, and improved school retention rates, especially in early childhood. In India, where foundational literacy and numeracy remain pressing challenges, this method offers a real opportunity for transformation.
Yet, despite its proven impact, traditional schooling systems with their focus on textbooks and testing continue to dominate. Children are often seen as empty vessels to be filled with knowledge, rather than active participants in their own learning. Play-based learning flips that narrative.
How does it compare to traditional models?
Traditional education is largely teacher-driven, with rigid curricula and outcomes focused on test performance. It prizes discipline and conformity. In contrast, play-based learning emphasizes process over performance, offering flexibility that is better suited to a child’s natural curiosity and pace.
It also challenges the one-size-fits-all model. Rather than measuring children against the same benchmarks, it allows each child to explore in their own way nurturing individuality and building confidence.
Where is it working?
India’s education landscape is beginning to reflect this change. Anganwadi centres under the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) now offer preschool education through play and storytelling. The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has introduced activity-based learning modules in its early years curriculum.
Development organizations are also stepping up. Smile Foundation, among others, works directly with schools and teachers to integrate play into daily teaching. Corporates like LEGO and Tata Trusts are donating learning tools and supporting infrastructure. These public-private partnerships are proving to be essential catalysts.
What needs to happen next?
Scaling play-based learning requires a concerted effort across systems:
- Infrastructure: Schools must be equipped with safe, flexible spaces and age-appropriate materials that foster play.
- Teacher training: Educators need both mindset shifts and hands-on training to design and deliver play-based lessons effectively.
- Parental engagement: Parents should be made aware of the long-term benefits of play-based learning so they can support it at home.
- Policy support: Governments must embed play into national early childhood strategies and provide funding for implementation.
- Tech innovation: E-learning platforms can make play-based content more accessible, particularly in underserved areas.
A child-first philosophy
At its heart, play-based learning is about trusting children to be curious, capable, and creative learners. By letting go of rigid models and embracing joyful exploration, we give every child the chance to fall in love with learning from the very beginning.
As India moves toward universal access to early childhood care and education, the question is no longer whether play belongs in the classroom, it’s how quickly we can make space for it.
