Play provides young children with the opportunity to express their ideas‎,‎ symbolize‎,‎ and test their knowledge of the world‎.‎ It provides the basis for inquiry in literacy‎,‎ science‎,‎ social studies‎,‎ mathematics‎,‎ art‎,‎ music‎,‎ and movement‎.‎ Through play‎,‎ young children become active learners engaged in explorations about themselves‎,‎ their community‎,‎ and their personal‎-social world‎.‎ An Integrated Play‎-Based Curriculum for Young Children offers the theoretical framework for understanding the origins of an early childhood play‎-based curriculum and how young children learn and understand concepts in a social and physical environment‎.‎ Distinguished author Olivia N‎.‎ Saracho then explores how play fits into various curriculum areas in order to help teachers develop their early childhood curriculum using developmentally and culturally appropriate practice‎.‎ Through this integrated approach‎,‎ young children are able to actively engage in meaningful and functional experiences in their natural context‎.‎Special Features Include‎:‎ * Vignettes of children‎'‎s conversatio‎.‎‎.‎‎.‎