Allowing children to play is so important to their development as a contributing member of society. Children need that designated playtime in order to develop physical, social, emotional and mental growth.
Physical Benefits
The physical benefits of children playing are many but can be narrowed down to these ideas:
- Playing with toys helps to develop fine and gross motor skills.
- Running outside is good for their heart and lungs.
- Climbing on trees or jungle gyms builds strength and muscle.
Social Benefits
Through playing with toys children learn how to:
- Sort out conflict
- Interact with other children
- Share
- Get along with other people
- Negotiate and compromise
Emotional Benefits
Play also encourages:
- Independance
- Self esteem
- Creativity
- Stress Release
- The child to express what he is feeling through imaginative play.
Mental Benefits
The mental benefits of playing depends on the toy the child has. For example:
- Shape sorters and blocks teach children about size and shape and matching.
- Legos teach about colors and symmetry.
- Childrens toys and playtime also help to teach the child to focus and concentrate.
- Hopscotch helps them learn to count.
- Construction sets help them to learn how things work.
Even play like imaginative play and story time and make believe all carry their own benefits for children. This is how they sort out real life. They don’t always need the highest brand of educational toys. If they see a policeman or a construction worker, they may want to pretend to be one which will eventually result in helping them to think towards what they want to be when they grow up.
Playing with a child is also incredibly important. Taking part in their make believe world will make them feel accepted, understood and independent. They will see that their opinion and interests matter to you and they are important to you, which is crucial to their development as a person independent of you. Never try to lead during playtime, let the child makes the decisions. Generally speaking, you are making all the other decisions of his life at the moment, as you should, but play time is a time where the child can take the role of being in charge and work out his leadership skills which will help in stand against peer pressure in his teenage age years. Squashing a child’s idea or imagination will only result in crushing their personality as they grow. It is not an effective form of discipline either. Try not to use methods such as taking toys or playtime away as a form of discipline. This will only show them that learning is not an important part of growing up.
Playing with your little one will help you get to know him or her and what their personality consists of. Find out their likes and dislikes and habits and quirky personality traits; it’s so much fun just to watch them becoming independent little beings. You may find that many of the things they do are imitations of you or your spouse, as they watch you. You won’t even realize how much they watch but even if they are looking directly at you, children are little sponges that take in everything in their surroundings. Read more like this.
