Observing Playfulness in Physical Games: Implications for AI-Enhanced Teaching and Child Development

Hanlu XU, Hongxia CEN

Abstract


This study, grounded in the Child Playfulness Scale (CPS), examined age- and gender-related differences in playfulness among young children during physical games. Using a revised CPS (assessing physical/social/cognitive spontaneity, manifest joy, sense of humor), we analyzed 30 children (10 each from junior/middle/senior kindergarten classes, 1:1 gender ratio) from two Hangzhou kindergartens.
Results showed children scored highly in physical spontaneity and manifest joy but lower in sense of humor. Boys exhibited greater physical spontaneity, while girls outperformed in social and cognitive spontaneity. Senior class children had significantly higher humor scores than younger peers, though total playfulness did not increase linearly with age.
Potential influencing factors included uneven game time, kindergarten environment variations, and scale limitations. This research provides empirical support for physical game design and playfulness assessment, and offers insights into enhancing teachers’ activity design/adaptive instruction competencies via AI tools, aligning with AI-empowered education trends.


Keywords


Young children; Physical games; Playfulness manifestation; Age differences; Gender differences; AI in education; Teacher competency

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References


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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3968/13877

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