The Five Ways to Wellbeing was developed by Aked, J., Marks, N., Cordon, C. and Thompson, S. (2008). One of the special things about intergenerational play is that it can offer the five ways of wellbeing. Through generational learning we can:

• Connect - elders telling stories about their lives to children

• Be active - movement and acting songs can support movement for everyone 

• Take notice - this is a reciprocal dynamic between elder and child. To engage, both parties need to listen and respond. 

• Continue to learn - Another two-way street, children have lots to tell the older generation, and they love to share stories of family, pets, and friends, just like adults do with one-another. 

• Give - elders feel a huge sense of self-worth when they feel useful, and part of this is giving. 

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In this way, there is a focus on how members learn, rather than what is learnt. In this way learning can happen spontaneously rather than as a planned ‘outcome led’ activity like you may find at school/preschool. 

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In Part 1 of this module we learnt about Sociocultural theories of learning. Vygotsky's theory views human development as a socially mediated process through which children acquire their cultural values, beliefs, and problem-solving strategies. They do this through collaboration and dialogue with more knowledgeable members of society. Here, the elders, as valuable ‘others’, feel a sense of giving and usefulness when they talk with children. The children are inherently learning through conversation and joint play. 

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