Importance of Play for Children
Many parents instinctively know why playing is important for children, but despite its many benefits, we rarely play with learning.
Importance of Play
Play allows children to use their creativity while developing their imaginativeness, dexterity and physical, cognitive and emotional strength. Play allows children to explore the world, practice adult roles, and gain confidence. And this improves children.
If play is so important for the development of a child, then what is the effect of deficiency in this play? In combination with the secondary message that children are receiving from today’s high-pressure world – that they must be the “best” of all time – children are showing higher levels of stress, anxiety and depression
For most people, learning involves acquiring a specific new skill, such as memorizing a letter, counting, writing, and more. They often believe that playing is for entertainment only and does not involve any real education.
The importance of playing in childhood cannot be underestimated as play is essential for the growth of the child.
Promoting the early development of the brain
Sports can promote a child’s brain development in many ways, including providing life experiences that are important for brain development.
An environment rich in sports and content provides the perfect life experience to build that foundation. If those experiences are absent, the associated synapses will be lost.
Spark Creative Thinking
Perhaps the most obvious benefit of playing is that it increases the child’s creativity.
Creativity is associated with proximal thinking, which explores many possible solutions and usually generates creative ideas. Numerous studies have found that drama is associated with a higher level of thinking.
Free play is unstructured play that encourages children to explore and design their games. It is necessary for a child to imagine scenarios in order to play a play and then take an action to get them out. The freedom of this type of play allows children to be creative.
Imagination fuels creativity and some studies have also shown that creative teenagers have imaginary friends in childhood.
Improvement in communication, vocabulary and language
The link between early play and later communication skills is also evident in research.
One study tried to understand whether sports could benefit from communication. Researchers see what happens when an infant starts playing with a toy. They found that if the mother responded by manipulating and naming toys, the child would – when tested three months later – have better skills.
Pretend-play is particularly beneficial because it allows young children to speak and practice their vocabulary while trying to understand others. During social play, they often repeat each other’s words and actions to reach agreements.
You should try these things with your child.
- Do give children enough time to be creative, reflective, and decompress.
- Encourage your children to play active (running around or playing ) in lieu of passive entertainment (video games or television).
- Spend unstructured time together with your children.
- Ask your child regularly if he / she feels overly tired, burned or oversize
- Allow your children to say what they are involved in.
- Join your child’s school and play an active role in ensuring that all children are getting enough free time.
Activities to do with children outside the home: safe family time
After several weeks closed at home, we are gradually resuming life as normal as possible, even with new safety and hygiene rules. So, if you are looking for activities to do with children outside the home, we have some suggestions.
8 Activities to Do with Kids Outside the Home
Enjoy nature
An excellent option for outdoor activities is to go to the countryside or to a park and simply enjoy the free space and how in these places, even the air looks cleaner. You can go with defined plans of what you want to do or just go on the adventure – those who have children know how quickly they are entertained and how everything can be fun.
Have a picnic
Don’t think that having a picnic will take a lot of work. If only the logistics are already scary, then simplify: choose some very fresh fruits, don’t forget the drinks for everyone to stay hydrated, bring some games and sunscreen, and that’s all it takes for a few hours of family entertainment.
However, it is never too much to remember that there may be rules for access and frequency of the place you choose to have the picnic, so, for your safety and that of your family, respect them.
Gardening
You don’t need to have an outdoor space at home to dedicate yourself to gardening – there are many places in the forests of pine forests where you can plant a tree and thereby help to recreate Portugal’s green lungs that, year after year, are being decimated by force of fires.
If you choose to do it at home, or in a community garden, take the opportunity to make this a fun time for the youngest, teaching them about the different vegetables, fruits, herbs, or plants they decide to plant.
Manual activities
Why not take the kids to an outdoor place that everyone likes and challenge them to draw a picture or a representation of the meaning of that space?
Creativity will be able to fly without limits and, with that, will have very original works, full of history.
They can also choose to take pictures and make this a family hobby: every week choose a different theme and, after some time, they can set up an exhibition for family and close friends to see.
Going to the beach
Even though there are now rules for access and frequency of beaches, this remains an activity that leaves everyone with a smile on their face.
As it is not possible to play beach games, such as playing ball or rackets, choose to take quieter games, such as cards – something that may not be so interesting for the youngest, but that, once they learn, will guarantee many smiles.
Watch the stars
Summer nights also invite you to stroll – with the advantage of fewer people on the streets, therefore less confusion. So, take the time to take the family to a place where you can see the sky well and simply enjoy this spectacle so beautiful and free that it is to see the stars.
Go to the zoo
Zoos are also open to the public again, at least for the most part, so this may well be something to include in the list of activities to do with children outside the home.
Seeing different animals, even having the possibility to participate in some activities, such as feeding moments, is something that the younger ones always love, and that is reflected in an afternoon very well spent with the family.
Ride a bike
Another activity for kids and adults: riding a bicycle is both fun and educational, as we are promoting physical activity without the younger ones realizing it.
Perfect for the laziest who need that extra motivation for the sport or even to start to de-numb the muscles of the body after several weeks closed at home.