Discuss The Four Stages Of Play In Child Development

The stages of social play is a theory that is composed by Mildred Parten. In 1932, she conducted a study of children from ages of 2 to 4 years old. The goal of her experiment was to identify the interaction of children among peers and influences of play. There are 6 stages of social play behavior; unoccupied, onlooker, solitary independent, parallel activity, associative play, and cooperative organized play. All of these stages were represented in my observation of the toddlers play with one another. The first 3 behaviors of social play correlated to a child’s independence involved to social play among his or her peers. Those behaviors are unoccupied, onlooker, and solitary independence. First, the behavior of a child may not engage in

To children, play is just fun. However, playtime is as important to their development as food and good care. Playtime helps children be creative, learn problem-solving skills and learn self-control.  Good, hardy play, which includes running and yelling, is not only fun, but helps children to be physically and mentally healthy.

D1 – Play is a thing in which all children should do. It helps social/emotional/physical and cognitive development. It helps build relationships, team work, helps communications, movement, understanding and problem solving also play is a certain way we develop all key skills and this is something all children should do. It supports the children’s holistic development. It helps build relationships, team work, helps communication, movement, understanding and problem solving.

Another benefit of child-led play is that children, while exploring, are being active and developing different motor skills. This physical play is developed by running, jumping, climbing, and anything that gets them moving in order to develop their muscle and body control (Pasquariello). While the children engage in this type of play, they are able to have fun while also maintaining a healthy body physic. With this they are able to maintain an average “height, weight, general appearance…. and

Play is central to the development of children, enabling them to make sense of their world as they learn through exploration and experimentation. Susan Isaacs said ‘play is indeed the child’s work and the means whereby he grows and develops’. (Isaacs,1929) Play can support a child’s social, emotional and behavioural development through the following:

Explain the role of play in children’s development and learning and how children benefit from play? Learning to play is essential for a child's intellectual and emotional development. Play can help a child work out situations in their environment, such as social dynamics in a group. Furthermore, board games helps to teach rules, reading, counting and other educationally relevant skills. Block building, clay and other creative "hands on" activities helps a child see how things work.

10). According to Landreth (2012), “Play therapy… facilitates the development of a safe relationship for the child… to fully express and explore self (feelings, thoughts, experiences, and behaviors) through play, the child’s natural medium of communication, for optimal growth and development”

This is providing opportunities for collaborative learning with adults and this allows for the practice of skills. Play has a big effect on a child’s life. It also gives a big role to a child’s life. Play benefits a child mentally, emotionally, and socially because it helps the child’s development during the childhood stage. A child develops mental skills through play by language, they learn words through friends and hearing words

Children often face various mental health issues when they are growing up. These issues include anxiety, trauma, depression and now even autistic children. Treating young children of these conditions has been a great challenge over time. Therapy can help give children the opportunity to express their feelings through play. According to the Association for Play Therapy (2002), play therapy is a "systematic use of a theoretical model to establish an interpersonal process in which trained play therapists use the therapeutic powers of play to help clients prevent or resolve psychosocial difficulties and achieve optimal growth and development." Although various studies have been conducted in regards to play research, there is no link that has been given between play therapy and the success of an individual later in life.

Play is a fundamental element to a child’s well-being and happiness. Evidence has shown that play contributes to a child’s health and future life chances. Without play or having restricted play it can negativity impact a child’s physical and mental health which can then lead to things such as obesity, rickets and attention deficit disorder.

165 and Wood & Attfield's 1996, p.76.) It encourages children to develop the ability to control their actions and emotions and adjust them to the recognized social norm and in addition to that, play helps children to prepare themselves to become an active member of a culture and their own family by interacting with the people closest to them, such as parents and other family members (Vygotsky, as cited in Brennan, 2012, p.162.) As a result of this, their social and emotional development is advanced from an early stage.

The early childhood years from 2 to 6 years old are a time of continued growth and development. Individual differences in growth are becoming more obvious as children are starting to discover who they are. There are many developmental milestones that children will reach within these four years, all at their own pace, ability and time. We will take a closer look into some of the milestones that preschool age children reach within the four developmental domains: physical, cognitive, language, social and emotional.

When I think about the word “play therapy”, I think of it as a tool or a way to help out another individual or child express their anxieties and conflicts through play in a therapeutic setting. In class, the introductory handout on “Playful Thoughts” was a useful way to capture moments from childhood that would emphasize either happy or unhappy play memories. From one of the questions in the handout, a moment I would never forget would be when I accidentally stapled my hand at the age of four, when I was trying to staple a couple of pages back to a coloring book. A couple of students in class discussed their experience; and their experiences were mixed, as in some described happier moments, while others discussed sadder moments. In class we

Play is considered as an important tool for emotional development as children recognise themselves more clearly and they are encouraged to fully realize their potential (Oliver & Klugman, 2002). Piaget explains that during pre-operational stage children develop their ability to distinguish between the real and mental world by using an object as a symbol for something else rather than the object itself and Vygotsky also agreed to this concept (Dockett & Fleer, 2002). Play enables them to share their play with their peers and listen to others point of views which develop their empathy (Smidt, 2011). Play positively affects the emotional well- being of the child when they show their enjoyment through laughter, smiles. They get motivated to play when they are the active participants in the play and achieve mastery in known fields being acknowledged by the adults. It gives them internal excitement which nurtures their desire to learn.

Along with the many types of play, there are also a few functions of play. One of the functions of play is the ability to master anxieties and conflicts. Playing can relieve tension because of the relaxed setting and atmosphere. This also helps with coping with problems. Building with blocks and knocking them down is a great example of how play can relieve tension. This is fun and it lets the child show emotion. Another function of play is that it can work off excess energy. This is especially useful and important with children with ADHD. They have symptoms of hyperactivity and inability to concentrate, so play can help improve these issues by getting energy out and relieving any anxieties or tensions. Any kind of play can help children work off frustration and cope with their feelings. This is a form of play therapy. It is a simple way of kicking back and relaxing; doing something you enjoy. This can mean so many things such as coloring or playing with play doh.