Play is a learning situation for both the child and parent. Play is the way a child learns who he/she is and what he/she can do. It helps him/her relate to the world in which he/she lives. Through play, a child discovers, explored, imagines, solves problems, tests and gradually gains mastery over his/her environment, resulting in a more competent individual. How often have you heard a child say "See what I did?" Play allows children to test their limits and carry what they have learned as far as they can. Play gives children the freedom to fail and make mistakes.
Play aids physical development. Running, jumping, skipping, shrieking and laughing all contribute to good health and the development of gross and perceptual motor skills.
Play is a mans of emotional expression. Fantasy play can lessen feelings of fear and anger, giving children the chance to experience and enjoy the feeling of control. (For example, a child may play doctor and give injections to imaginary friends.)
Through play the child communicates ideas, needs, concerns, and emotions. An adult can learn a lot about the child's feelings of joy, hope, anger, or fear by watching, listening, and talking with a child at play.
Play allows children to try out roles such as mother, father, teacher, doctor, etc. This helps children see a point of view other than their own.
Play in a supportive environment permits children to experiment with their imaginations and to explore the impossible and absurd. (Boxes and blocks may become houses, palaces, or entire kingdoms; dolls may become mothers, children, or even monsters!) Encouraging creativity helps children become self-confident about expressing his/her thoughts and ideas.
Play provides social interaction. The child learns how to cooperate, to compete, to share, and to be sensitive to the feelings of others.
And so for the child, PLAY is not frivolous but the child's work. It takes practice, practice, practice to become creative, competent and self-confident.
Diana Wagner-Boyd
August 2004