6 Reasons Why Playing With Your Kids Is So Important for Their Development
Play might seem like just fun and games, but it’s an act profoundly crucial to healthy brain development in all children. Here are six reasons why playing with your child is vital for their growth.
1. How Your Child Learns Through Play
When children play, they grow cognitively, physically, emotionally, and socially. This is beneficial to their development. Children constantly learn through play, whether it’s about the environment they encounter, the friends they play with, or how their body reacts to the toy they hold. Their mind actively processes the information they receive, sorting and storing it for future use.
In the end, no app or video is as informative or valuable for teaching your child about the world as the act of play.
2. How Play Supports Your Child Cognitively
During play, children make decisions and watch the consequences of their actions. Play helps them piece together the concept of cause and effect and better understand that choices have actual life outcomes. Additionally, children can use play to test out new ideas they’ve learned and make connections with previous experiences. Creative play, which engages the imagination to pretend, does much to help children use critical thinking skills and grow cognitively.
You can be of great help to your child by providing play materials they can use for various purposes. This will engage your child’s creativity and allow them to dictate how and why they use an object. Encourage your child to play pretend with you, as this example of open-ended play is another fantastic way to help your child develop their ability to conceptualize and brainstorm. Plus, it’s a lot of fun!
3. Play and Your Child’s Mental Health
Play is a natural outlet for children to process any stress and relieve any anxiety they may face in their lives. Ensure your child isn’t too overscheduled with hobbies or extracurricular activities to enjoy a bit of free play every day. It’s a good way for them to have fun and reconnect with the fact that they are a child.
Additionally, when you or a grandparent plays with your child, it builds their confidence. This one-on-one time does wonders for your child and gives them a greater sense of self-esteem. Children can learn skills to process their emotions through one-on-one play better. When a child loses a game, they might feel angry or sad, but it presents an opportunity to process their feelings. You can discuss these feelings and the appropriate way to express them.
When you or a grandparent plays with your child, you can also model proper emotional regulation. This goes a long way in helping your child develop into a well-adjusted adolescent.
4. How Play Supports Your Child Socially
When children play with their peers, they learn many things about interacting with others. When engaging in play activities together, children learn how to work together, compromise, negotiate, and even stand up for themselves. When you play with your child, you benefit them greatly by building a loving and trusting relationship. Additionally, a play relationship between you and your child is hugely helpful in developing your child’s language skills.
You can further help your child by setting up playdates with your child’s friends from daycare or preschool. During visits to the local playground, your child might appreciate your guidance as you encourage them to play with other children or take turns on the slide.
5. Play and Your Child’s Health
Play is active and keeps children busy. It also activates your child’s muscles, accelerates their heart rate, and improves their dexterity. Active play can also prevent childhood obesity and type 2 diabetes.
Depending on your child’s age, engage in active play with them for at least 30 to 60 minutes a day. Make the activity a mix of structured and free play to keep your child engaged. The more time you encourage your child to spend playing each day, the more long-term positive impacts on their healthy habits.
6. How Play Supports Risk-Taking
Risk-taking behaviour often has a negative connotation, and there are certainly examples to warrant this understanding. However, the impulse of risk-taking itself is not destructive but rather something inherent to childhood. Play is often spontaneous and supports a healthy level of risk-taking – think of your child jumping off the couch into the pillow fort below – and encourages children to interact with the environment so they can understand how the world around them operates.
Children can additionally benefit from appropriate risk-taking behaviours by developing a greater sense of mental flexibility and comfort with the unknown.
As a parent, you can foster an appropriate level of risk-taking by playing with your child. Consider the risk of the situation versus the benefit gained. Say your child wants to climb this tree. Worst case scenario – she could fall and break her arm. Best case scenario – she climbs the tree successfully and feels great about herself. Give your child a measure of independence with risk-taking behaviours during playtime, and be prepared to step in if things go awry.
Play With Your Child and Support Their Development
Play is a means of realizing extensive cognitive, mental, physical, and emotional development for your child. Engage in at least 30 minutes of play with your child today. They will appreciate your attention, and you’ll enjoy the time too!
*This is a collaborative post
