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It is reported that the thesis section is available, to publish abstracts of postgraduate theses in the disciplinary field. Who submits your thesis, must present the title, abstract, key words (include Occupational Therapy), and a summary of 2 to 3 pages of your thesis. And `present it in Spanish, English and / or Portuguese.
Descriptive study on the form and function of unstructured play in the pre-school child.
Abstract
The AIM of this research is to investigate the form and function of the unstructured play of seven children in transition stage (4 to 5 year-old) in the city of Punta Arenas. The children considered in this study are from preschool educational institutions living in the region of Magallanes and the Chilean Antartica. Under the theoretical foundations of Occupational Science it is expected to identify the relevant aspects of the children’s behavior in unstructured play, especially those that may help, or having negative effects in the school performance.
The methodology used in this case is qualitative, being its method the case study. The main results demonstrate similarities regarding the functions of the children’s unstructured play, being these mainly “motor-social” functions that have an effect in the school performance. It can be concluded then, that unstructured play helps to develop the children’s learning strategies. It can be used as a diagnosis tool because it permits the observation of adaptive behaviors in children, and also allows determining signs of alert considering the child’s age of development.
