Why Play During Early Childhood Development Is Important

1. Why Play During Early Childhood Development Is Important

2. When children play, they learn There are times when children play with friends and sometimes want to be left alone to play on their own. Sometimes they may speak aloud while at play and at other times, be silent in their heads. Sometimes their play is messy or risky and other times, quiet and relaxed. Free play is also important for learning problem-solving skills. Your child may prefer to try and solve a problem or come up with a solution on her own to express her way of thinking. These skills develop rapidly when a child has the habit of playing independently. When a child is playing on her own, she is keeping busy and engaged and is using her imagination and creativity in childhood.

3. Benefits of different types of play As stated earlier, play is among the most important ways in which children begin learning. While there are many characteristics of play, it is sufficient to know that through play children get to practice and develop key physical, emotional, thinking, and social skills, including creativity, imagination, and problem-solving. Free play in early childhood also lays a solid foundation for formal learning in a regular school environment, enabling children to develop a sense of achievement and increase their feeling of self-worth and confidence. What is important to understand is that parents need not actively teach the lessons their child will learn through play.

4. Physical play involves movement: When kids play they are physically exercising their bodies, they get to use the large muscles of the legs, arms and back to move. Physical play is important in order to promote and maintain your child’s health, but also to connect with each aspect of her development and growth. Physical exercise improves brain activity by getting fresh air into the bloodstream and flowing through the brain cells. Physical movement helps a child learn through her senses about pace; spatial awareness; height; weight and the surrounding environment.

5. Playing with objects: Also known as parallel play, it involves children playing alongside each other, but not quite together. Playing with objects helps your child develop her fine and gross motor skills when she learns to fit building blocks together and put pieces of puzzles together. Playing with objects encourages your child’s cognitive development as it helps her to think in a clear and logical manner, sort shapes, and sizes and develop spatial awareness. It also creates opportunities for your child to acquire and develop social skills. As your child begins to play with other children her age, she learns what it means to cooperate, take turns and share her playthings.

6. Learning through discovery: More learning happens when a child takes part in activities where she gets to convey her own ideas using materials with new textures and shapes — sand, water, stones, and shells. You can use a wider range of materials to promote discovery through play. You can make it relevant even for babies when they are able to sit but are not yet mobile. Encourage your baby to discover by using her senses. But make sure the materials offered are safe and age-appropriate. Amongst the many benefits of discovery through play, the biggest one is that a child develops creativity, as she has the freedom to explore.

7. Expressing through creative play: Creative play enables the child to experiment and express herself by giving your child an opportunity to paint, draw, sketch, dance and sing. Remember, it is the process of doing and creating something that is important, rather than the end result of the activity. This type of play enables the child to practice physical skills and coordination, and develop relationships with others. Creative play also helps the child to develop cognitive and language skills, and to build confidence. You can promote your child’s cognitive development as she will begin to explore textures by using her sense of touch or sensitize her hearing by asking her to listen to the sound of pouring water.

8. Imagining role-playing: Imaginative play or role-playing is when children think and act out their feelings and emotions, as well as by speaking to toys and by other objects around them. This helps children to develop their language and communication skills and is also connected to every other aspect of child development e.g. physical, intellectual, emotional and social. There are different kinds of imaginative play. But remember, it needn’t be elaborate or expensive. Depending on the age and development stage of your child, one day she may want to play the role of a doctor. While on another day she’d want to stage a drama cooperatively by involving other children. Or indulge in fantasy play, where she might want to play the role of Wonderwoman, the character from her favourite television show.

9. conclusion My Gym has specially designed whole-child development programs that lay a firm foundation for personal, academic and future growth by involving your child in age-appropriate structured and unstructured physical activities and developing thinking and problem-solving skills.

10. Our Branches: My Gym Buona Vista 35, Rochester Drive, Rochester Mall, #03-24/25/26 Singapore 138639 Phone: (+65) 6684 9220 My Gym Great World 1 Kim Seng Promenade #03-106 Great World City Singapore 237994 Phone: (+65) 6235 4070 My Gym Jurong East 3 Gateway Drive, Westgate, #04-39 Singapore 608532 Phone: (+65) 6465 9205 My Gym Punggol 681 Punggol Drive, Oasis Terrace, #03-02/03/04 Singapore 820681 Phone: (+65) 6787 1178 My Gym Tampines 300 Tampines Avenue 5, NTUC Income, #05-05, Singapore 529653 Phone: (+65) 6789 7061 My Gym Parkway Parade 80 Marine Parade Road, #15-03 Parkway Parade, Singapore 449269 Phone: (+65) 6440 9916

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