Early childhood · Weekly group · Delivered in-service
Preschool Boost: Learn to Play Group
Play is not a luxury, it is the work of childhood. The Learn to Play Group is a structured, therapist-led group program based on Dr Karen Stagnitti's internationally recognised Learn to Play approach, brought directly into your preschool room.
Designed for children who are not yet playing to their developmental potential, the program targets the building blocks of pretend play: object substitution, doll and teddy play, role play, and the ability to create and sustain a play narrative. These are the skills that underpin language, social development and school readiness.
Play is our brain's favourite way of learning.Diane Ackerman
How it works
What Learn to Play sessions look like
- The program runs weekly over 17 weeks, in-person, in your room
- Each week is 30 minutes of educator training, then a 60-minute Learn to Play group, then 30 minutes of reflection to plan what to try before next session
- Each session is carefully scaffolded to gently expand what children can do
- Sessions always follow the child's lead, within a warm and predictable structure
- An AkindaCo therapist runs the group alongside your educators and models how to extend play in the moment, so your team learns by watching it happen
- Children are referred in by our therapists following observation and assessment, so the group is targeted for every participant
Which children benefit most
The Learn to Play Group is particularly well suited to children who struggle with sustained attention, social engagement or imaginative play, including children with developmental delays, autism, language difficulties or trauma histories.
By meeting children where they are and building their play capacity, the group creates a ripple effect: children who play better connect better, communicate better and learn better.
It runs all year round
There is no fixed intake and no waiting for a term to start. The group runs continuously, so you can reach out at any time and we will book your centre in. A free 30-minute virtual consultation comes first, so you can work out whether it fits before committing to anything.
We adapt it, and we travel
We adapt this program, and we specialise in working with families. If what your service needs sits between Learn to Play and our Attachment, Trauma & Child Development series, or outside both of them, we can build it. Reach out to talk about how we would change it.
We travel to regional and remote South Australia. This program is approved for delivery across all areas of the state. Travel within 10km of 183 Tynte St, North Adelaide and 21 Philip Highway, Elizabeth is included in the cost. Beyond that, travel is charged at $285 per hour. Being a long way out is a logistics question, not a reason we cannot come.
Cost
The program is delivered at $570 per weekly session, which covers the educator training, the group itself and the post-group reflection. A free 30-minute virtual consultation is available to explore how AkindaCo can support your team before you commit. Travel is included within 10km of our North Adelaide and Elizabeth locations, and charged at $285 per hour beyond that.
Who delivers it
AkindaCo therapists, with Kate Maitland, Psychotherapist and Preschool Boost Lead, leading the program. Meet the full team.
About Preschool Boost
Preschool Boost is a South Australian Department for Education initiative. You can read about the wider program on the Office for Early Childhood Development website.
This program is an approved Preschool Boost listing. You can see it in the government provider directory as Learn to Play Group, alongside Attachment, Trauma and Child Development and Various Allied Health Supports. All three are listed under AkindaCo in the Preschool Boost directory.
AkindaCo also runs Preschool Boost: Attachment, Trauma & Child Development, a six-unit professional development series for your whole educator team, and provides Positive Behaviour Support for children and families across Adelaide.
Bring Learn to Play into your room
Tell us about your centre and the children you have in mind.