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Developmental Benefits of PlayA child’s work is to play, but it seems that today’s children do more than “just” play. Parents worry about enriching children and providing opportunities for structure learning, which means enrolling them in scheduled activities, club meetings, and extracurricular classes. These activities leave little time for the benefits of unstructured, imaginative play.What are the Benefits?National Public Radio’s Alix Spiegel asserts that imaginative play allows children to learn to regulate themselves. The lack of time spent making up games and using their imaginations has resulted in children who cannot control their emotions and behaviors or resist impulses.When children engage in imaginative play, they engage in a kind of discussion with themselves in which they state what they are going to do, and then do it. Structured classes and leagues don’t allow for this kind of internal dialogue, and therefore children do not develop self-regulation strategies. Self-regulation is important to develop and maintain; the more self-regulation a child has, the lower the chance of his dropping out of school. A better predictor of school success than his IQ, this self-regulation of emotions means children are better able to learn. As researcher Laura Berk explains, "Self-regulation predicts effective development in virtually every domain.” The American Academy of Pediatrics publication “The Importance of Play in Promoting Healthy Child Development and Maintaining Strong Parent-Child Bonds” asserts that play allows children to develop their imagination, use their creativity, develop their dexterity, and “physical, cognitive, and emotional strength. Play is important to healthy brain development.” Play allows children to create worlds, practice adult roles, and conquer fears. Undirected, or child-driven, play “allows children to learn how to work in groups, to share, to negotiate, to resolve conflicts, and to learn self-advocacy skills.” In short, thorough play, children interact with the world around them, and play encourages the development of healthy bodies. Active play, versus passive entertainment, helps develop leadership and group skills. The social, cognitive, and physical benefits of play are numerous. Plus, unstructured play is a simple joy of childhood. Benefits for ParentsAny parent who has observed a child at play will notice that children create their own, unique worlds of play. Observing or joining in play gives parents the chance to see the world through a child’s eyes, and to learn how to more effectively communicate with their child. Essential to bonding, time spent at play with a child will increase the opportunity for parent and child to pay full attention to one another, away from the stress of daily life and the structure of classes, leagues, and other formal activities.Just Child’s Play?Think again. Make-believe games and time spent freely using his imagination results in a child who is better able to control himself and to learn, who is developing cognitive abilities, physical dexterity, and valuable social skills. While this seems to fly in the face of “enrichment programs,” evidence suggests that the developmental benefits of play are more valuable than those that a structured setting can offer.Further Reading:For more on the developmental benefits of play visit http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/119/1/182 and http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=19212514. |
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