PLA May 2026 Meet-up

This is the Playful Learning Association's first in-person event of the year! Join us in Newcastle at Northumbria University from Thursday lunchtime to Friday lunchtime for lots of lovely stuff around Playful Learning in adults.

The theme will be Playful Learning Design, whether that's designing great, accessible playful learning experiences, taking a playful approach to design, or something you can surprise us with :) The programme is made up of contributions by attendees, so if you fancy sharing your work, getting feedback on work in progress from a bunch of lovely people, or just floating playful ideas, let us know! Just give a sentence when you book, or get in touch afterwards (hint - I'm less likely to lose things on the booking form!)

We often sell out, so book early if you can, but please only book if you can definitely come - or numbers will be wrong and we'll let people down (and order too much food for lunch).

More information will follow later including room numbers, suggested hotels, activity for the Thursday night, etc.

Draft programme:

Thursday

12:30 – 1:30 Arrive, Lunch

1:30 – 2:00 Warm-ups, introductions, etc

2:00-3:00 Re:Play Team activity (Alex Moseley et al!)

3:00-3:30A co-designed card game for mentoring new teachers, funded by the British Academy. Kathryn Spicksley

3:30-4:00 Communicating playfully and with compassion for maximum engagement. Martina Diehl

4:00-4:45 Theatre and Neurodiverse Communication or Theatrical Clowning. Sabrina Crookshank.

5:00 Round off / finish for the day

Friday

09:30-10:15 The rebound effects (systems dynamics) and environmental impacts of their design interventions. Marcia Smith

10:15-11:00 The pitfalls of playful learning design and how to avoid them. Daisy Abbot

11:00-11:45 Using Memes for Reflection and Expression of Emotion. Helen Tidy

11:45-12:30 The last PLA online playful learning seminar. Mark Childs.

12:30-13:00 Round off and end

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Host or Publisher Andrew Walsh