The purpose of this qualitative study will be to examine how early childhood learners and their teachers experience the play of a structured cooperative storytelling game in their shared classroom environment, with specific focus on cognitive and social knowledge construction. This study will use an instrumental case study approach to observe classroom game play sessions as well as qualitative interviews to explore the features of a cooperative storytelling game play activity, to ask how these features inform understanding of cognitive and social knowledge construction, to identify best practices for developing similar activities, and to identify implications for future inquiry. Thematic analysis of observations and interviews will be used to facilitate understanding of learner and teacher experiences in order to inform broader understanding of games-based play in early childhood classrooms.
