Welcome to online training for the Indigenous Child-Initiated Pretend Play Assessment (I-ChIPPA). To complete this training you will need an I-ChIPPA Kit, or an I-ChIPPA Supplement Kit if you already have a ChIPPA2 Kit.
The I-ChIPPA is a culturally responsive version of the Child-Initiated Pretend Play Assessment 2 for Australian Aboriginal children aged 4 to 7 years.
In Australia there are many First Nation countries and communities with Elders as custodians of knowledge and lore. In each community, what children play is influenced by their culture. The Indigenous Child-Initiated Pretend Play Assessment is based on the Child-Initiated Pretend Play Assessment with the I-ChIPPA being developed through consultation with communities and Elders in North West Australia. In the manual, Karen Stagnitti and Alma Dender encourage users of the I-ChIPPA to defer to the Elders in their community in how this assessment should be administered and what animals should be included. The I-ChIPPA is designed so that the administration and materials are responsive to the child’s culture. We are also aware that the name of this assessment may need to be changed for use within some communities.
The I-ChIPPA can be used when there is a concern about a child’s play ability. The I-ChIPPA is for children aged 4 to 7 years 11 months and can be administered with pairs of children or with single children. For pairs of children, the I-ChIPPA also includes the Play Partner Scale, developed by Alma Dender. The Play Partner Scale takes into account a play partner when playing. Using the I-ChIPPA, a child’s ability to sequence play actions, use symbols in play and self-initiate play are observed. There are no norm scores in the I-ChIPPA as comparing one child to another is not culturally responsive in many communities. Rather, a description of a child’s play is made, based on observations of a child’s ability to sequence play actions, use symbols in play, self-initiate play, play with a partner, and other observations noted in the Clinical Observations form. The information gained from the I-ChIPPA can be used to inform significant adults in a child’s life on how to support a child to develop their play to more complex levels.
This training has 2 sections:
- 5 Modules for self-study (3 hours 18 minutes). After each Module there is a short quiz to complete. Participants are required to attain a minimum score of 80% in each quiz. Once 80% or more is accomplished the participant can proceed to the next Module. You will have 6 months access to the Modules, both to work through them, and refer back to them during the supervision sessions.
- 10 hours of supervision in small groups, no larger than 5 per group (please note group sizes may be any number from 1 to 5, depending on demand). People in the group are to supply videos of them doing an I-ChIPPA, or if not possible in your workplace, you will need to discuss the assessment in depth.