We’ve all heard the term, “Oh, that’s child’s play.” It implies something is easy, frivolous and unimportant in the overall scheme of things. But to a child, child’s play is essential to their mental, social, emotional, and physical development.
All children love to play. What eludes some people however, is that play for children is incredibly important. Children need to play to promote growth in every area of their development. Play gives them an opportunity to burn off energy and put it to good use. A child’s motor skills, strength and stamina are all fortified through the use of play sessions. Sensory learning develops mostly through play. Without play the child’s physical development would be severely hampered.
A child’s curiosity is insatiable. By learning and exploring their surroundings they gradually make sense of their environment. Educators and parents have a responsiblity to make sure kids have a range of age appropriate toys to help support this development process. Play enables children to know things about the world and to discover information essential to learning.
Children will also learn basic concepts such as counting, colors, building simple things and problem solving through play. While a child is playing their thinking and reasoning skills are very active. Children learn to relate to one another, negotiate roles, share, and obey rules through play. They also learn how to belong to a group and how to be part of a team. Children will also create lasting friendships by playing.
Play will also generate a sense of accomplishment and the need for self-esteem as well as the skills of giving and receiving. Play is emotionally satisfying to children and will help them grow a strong sense of self. Dealing with feelings such as frustration, anger, fear and stress are all things that they will learn through pretending and will cultivate appropriate ways of dealing with these emotions. It’s vital that you encourage play in your children.
Finger paintings, mud pies, building great cities with blocks and coloring in are all exciting activities for kids. One excellent idea is to erect a kid’s play tent and pretend to go camping in the lounge room. Kids grow up fast so make sure they make the most of it.
Tags: Kids Learning, Encouraging Play