(A little about me, and the work behind Is it Time to Play)
Play has always been at the heart of early years education, yet it is increasingly something that teachers feel they need to explain, justify or defend. In conversations with practitioners working across Nursery, Reception and Key Stage One, I often hear the same question: how do we balance the pressure for progress with the importance of play-based learning?
For me, the answer begins with a simple belief.
Play is not the opposite of learning.
In fact, when we look closely at how young children develop language, confidence, curiosity and problem-solving skills, it becomes clear that play is one of the most powerful ways children learn. Within thoughtful early years classrooms, play creates opportunities for exploration, conversation, creativity and collaboration — all of which form the foundations of strong child development.
In this post, I want to share a little more about why I believe play matters in early years education, the values that shape my work with teachers, and the thinking behind Is it Time to Play? — a space created to support practitioners who want to deliver purposeful, play-based learning without losing sight of what matters most for children.
Why Play Matters in Early Years Education
If you spend enough time around me, you will probably hear me say the same thing again and again.
Play isn’t the opposite of learning.
In fact, it is one of the most powerful ways children learn.
My name is Emma, and I am the teacher and early years advocate behind Is it Time to Play?. Over the years I have worked with many teachers who care deeply about their classrooms, their provision, and the children they work with every day. These are teachers who want to get it right. Teachers who think carefully about the environments they create and the experiences they offer, because they understand that the early years matter.
And yet, when I speak with teachers, the same themes often come up.
Pressure.
Pressure to prove progress.
Pressure to gather evidence.
Pressure to move children forward quickly.
Sometimes, quietly and almost without noticing, that pressure can begin to reshape what early years classrooms look like. Play begins to feel like something extra, something that needs to be justified, or something that happens after the “real learning” has taken place.
But when you spend time in a thoughtful early years classroom, something very different becomes visible.
You see children deeply engaged in their ideas.
You see language developing through conversation and collaboration. You see problem solving emerging as children test, build, dismantle and rebuild. You see confidence growing as children try something new, make mistakes, and try again.
In those moments it becomes very clear that play is not separate from learning.
Play is where learning lives.
What I Believe About Early Years
Over time I have become very clear about the things I believe matter most in early years education.
I believe that play is powerful learning.
I believe that classrooms should feel busy, curious and alive, because thinking rarely happens in silence. It grows through conversation, exploration and shared ideas.
I believe that children need time — time to explore, to practise, to repeat experiences, and to develop their understanding in ways that make sense to them.
I believe that teachers deserve trust and professional respect for the decisions they make every day. Early years teaching requires deep knowledge of child development, careful observation, and thoughtful interaction. It is skilled work.
And perhaps most importantly, I believe that protecting childhood matters.
The early years are sometimes spoken about as though they are simply preparation for what comes next, but this stage of education is so much more than that. It is where the foundations for everything that follows are built.
Language.
Confidence.
Curiosity.
The ability to question, to problem solve, and to think independently.
These things do not develop through rushing children towards formal outcomes too quickly. They grow through rich experiences, meaningful relationships, and the kind of environments where children feel safe to explore their ideas.
Things I’ll Never Apologise For as an EYFS Teacher
Over the years I have also become very comfortable with the things I will never apologise for as an early years teacher.
I will never apologise for believing that play is powerful learning.
I will never apologise for classrooms that feel busy, curious and alive, because those are often the environments where the most meaningful thinking is happening.
I will never apologise for giving children the time they need to explore their ideas, develop their language, and return to experiences again and again as their understanding grows.
I will never apologise for trusting teachers’ professional judgement, because the decisions made by skilled early years practitioners are rooted in deep knowledge of children and how they learn.
I will never apologise for valuing conversation and curiosity, because those are the foundations of thinking.
And I will never apologise for advocating for play beyond the early years, because children do not suddenly stop learning through exploration when they move into the next phase of education.
Why I Created Is it Time to Play?
Is it Time to Play? began quite simply as a way of sharing ideas with other teachers.
Like many educators, I had spent years thinking about provision, planning and the environments we create for children. I began sharing some of those ideas online and quickly realised that there were many teachers looking for the same thing.
Clarity.
Practical ideas.
A space where early years teaching was valued and understood.
Over time that small space has grown into a community of teachers who believe in purposeful play, thoughtful provision, and environments where children can develop confidence, curiosity and independence.
Through resources, workshops and membership support, the aim has always remained the same: to help teachers feel confident in the work they are doing and to provide practical tools that support their classrooms.
Because early years education matters enormously.
And the teachers working in this phase deserve support, respect and trust.
A Space for Teachers Who Believe the Same
If you have found your way here because you care about play, early childhood and thoughtful teaching, then you are very much in the right place.
The work that happens in early years classrooms shapes children’s attitudes to learning, their sense of themselves as learners, and the foundations on which future learning is built.
That work deserves to be valued.
And the teachers doing it deserve to feel confident in the difference they are making every day.
Over time, many of the conversations I have had with teachers have centred around the same challenge: how to hold onto the principles of thoughtful, play-based learning while navigating the pressures that can sometimes surround early years practice.
That is one of the reasons the Is it Time to Play? membership was created. Alongside practical resources and planning support, the membership also includes Tea & Teach sessions — short, informal discussions where teachers can come together to share ideas, ask questions and reflect on the realities of classroom practice. These conversations are often some of the most valuable moments, because they remind us that thoughtful early years teaching is built not only on resources and planning, but also on collaboration, reflection and professional dialogue.