Six Categories Of Play

Play is essential to every part of children’s lives and is important to their development. It provides the children with different ways of doing things children will want to explore and learn new things.

The relationship between play and learning seems obvious to many child professionals and parents, and yet there are still lack of understanding surrounding the importance of children's play. Some people believe that children need to "work" not play, and that playing serves no useful purpose in a learning and development environment. This is surprising considering that play, with its high levels of motivation and potential enjoyment empowers children (as well as people

The terms “play”, “learn” and “teach” are commonly used in the early childhood sector. This essay attempts to define and interconnect these terms to produce a holistic understanding of how play can be used as a medium to help children learn.

Play has many definitions as far as children are concerned. Play is the engagement and enjoyment in recreational activities that are spontaneous. There are many psychologists that have tried to figure out the term "Play". Stanley Hall believes that every person will go through the same development process, which has been followed on from the age of evolution, and he believes that play is part of this process. Another psychologist Herbert Spencer decided that play was just a way of working off excess energy that we may have and which keeps us much calmer. Smart and Smart decided that play is what any child will do in any spare time that they have when they are not doing the usual parts of their daily life, such as eating, sleeping and learning.

Defining play can be very difficult. The term play can be used to illustrate a wide range of behaviors and activities, and can be perceived as both essential and insignificant to the child at the same time. Santrock (2012, p.437) suggests a definition of play as "a pleasurable activity that is engaged in for its own sake." However, this is argued by Kernan (2007, p.5) who states that none of the potential definitions are broad enough to encompass all of the meanings associated with play. Despite the lack of such universal definition, Rennie (2003, p.22) claims, that "we can recognize play across barriers of language, of culture, even of species", which conveys its importance in the life and development of children, as it is

Play is such a vital process through which children learn and develop.Play gives children the opportunity to learn, develop and experiment outside the constraints of real life. Through play children gain skills, knowledge and experiences and they get prepared to stand up as a human being and a member of society. But only by playing children do not reach up to that level. At some point of time the adult intervention is required to get the right direction of play.

There are numerous theories of play and countless theorists, from Freud and Spencer to Piaget and Vygotsky, who have studied play in relation to what it is and what it does for the child. This essay will outline the definition and value of play and the importance of how it can foster the child’s learning in regards to these theorists who studied the effects in great detail. It will discuss the how the environments constructed by educators can impact play and the theories of learning relating to the quote “play and learning are inextricably woven together ...” Ebbeck and Waniganayake, 2010, p. 5).

Play is a child’s way of learning. “Learning is creative, active and personal” (Dowling, M.). Engagement, co-operation, imagination and fun are all words that come to mind when thinking about children playing, however “there is no concise definition of play that could possibly cover all of the features that people include when they use the word” (Lindon, J). Play often conjures up ideas of children playing with toys however toys are not needed in order to play. Experience indicates that children will use their imagination to create opportunities for play using whatever resources are available to them, or using no resources at all. One has witnessed children playing imaginatively as superheroes and participating in imaginary sword fights without

Berger mentions three types of play children need for physical and cognitive growth along with psychosocial development. They are active, rough-and-tumble and sociodramatic. Active play includes walking, stretching, running, climbing, throwing, kicking, crawling, spiraling, swimming, and the list can go on and on when you add a game or a playmate. Active play facilitates to promote gross motor skills by developing muscles for strength and coordination. As the prefrontal cortex matures

Play Education is the most important activity in the lives of children. Play is the foundation of learning for young children. For children play, is how they begin to understand and process their world? The best part for children is that play is fun and this keeps them always wanting more because they enjoy participating in it. Play education is for children up until age 12. And different ages are broken down into groups. Giving the child time and some few basic toys can provide them with a variety of valuable learning opportunities. It is important to let children explore and learn how to play, if the child can’t seem to figure it out then a person can guide them. Play Education is simple and very effective; this is an individual

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.

Play is usually a natural activity in early childhood and has significant importance in early childhood special education. Play assists in enhancing the children social competence, creativity, language development, and their thinking skills. Play is usually the key vehicle for the developing of language, social skulls in young children (Rogers ET all. 2009). Moreover, it serves as a functional behavior which contributes to the life quality of the children. .

I too was taken back by the importance of play, and how the absence of play from a young age into our later years can have so many adverse effects on one’s personality, state of mind, and attitude towards life in general. In the Stuart Brown video, I was shocked that one of the findings from the Texas murderer was due to the lack of play (Brown, 2008). Stuart also covered the many types of play and their importance, such as, body play, object play (playing through the use of your hands) has a direct impact on problem solving, social play creates a sense of belonging, and rough and tumble play aids in cognitive, emotional, and physical development (Brown, 2008).

Everything a child learns is learned through play. It is essential to a child's development. Playing is experiencing and it is through experience that children learn.

When you think of play you don’t really think about or realize how important it really is in a child’s life. It consists of five elements, and these elements are the make-up and the meaning of play. The first element is that it is pleasurable and enjoyable. This means it must be fun! In order for it to be considered play, there must be a fun and enjoyable element to it. Play also has no extrinsic goal which means it is engaged for