The Influence of Play on Child Development Essay

The practitioner in an early years setting supporting children’s play learning and development is extremely important, as play helps stimulate the child’s brain, supports their needs on an educational level, as well as helping them with social difficulties such as building relationships, developing them and helping them gain confidence. Many people believe that a child learns best when they are motivated, such as Fredrich Froebel. He believed that children benefitted from all types of play. The McMillan sisters believed that outdoor play was extra important as they studied children who played and slept outside and discovered that they were the happier and healthier children in comparison to those who only played inside.

“Play is a process that is freely chosen, personally directed and intrinsically motivated. Children and young people determine and control the content and intent of their play by following their instincts, ideas and interests in their own way and for their own reasons. The child chooses when and how to play and this is seen as a biological drive, essential to health and well-being.”

Play is the way children learn and is a word that is used to describe the different activities behaviours that children participate in, this would concur with “Vygotsky’s (1978) social constructivist theory that suggests that play promotes both mental and social development for children” (cited in Goulding, 2016, p16). Early childhood educators such as Froebel and Vygotsky have always promoted the importance of the outdoor learning environment. According to Vygotsky (1978), children learn through interacting with the environment and through social interaction with others. Social constructivist theory, believes play is important for the growth of a child’s cognitive emotional and social development and

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

Why is it important for a child to play? In one article, it is stated that free, unstructured play is important for a child’s brain development (Anonymous, 2016). It allows for the child to not only

As a practitioner, we need to acknowledge how important play and leisure activities can be one of the cruel factor of a child’s development; Throughout my experience I have witnessed play to be extremely important to children’s and young people’s wellbeing and development.

In order for a child to develop productive social skills, it is important to choose toys to enhance active, imaginative play, and discourage time at the computer or television. A game in which a child is encouraged to think for themselves rather than sit motionless staring at an electronic screen, is better for the development of the child’s social skills (Moore, 2). Time spent with other children, rather the child’s own age or older, will help develop necessary social skills that will stick with the child through adulthood (Roode, 1). From the day they are born, infants and children begin to form relationships, these relationships eventually deepen and enable them to handle future relationships with others outside their initial circle (Roode, 1). The ability for a person to build and further relationships, make moral judgments, etc. can be enhanced with games played with a group of children, stuffed animals, puppets or instruments (Roode, 1).

The Early Years Learning Framework relates the importance of play to notions of belonging, being and becoming. It states that children make sense of their social worlds through playing with others (DEEWR, 2009). Article 13 of the UN Convention reads that every child has the right to rest and leisure, to engage in play and recreational activities appropriate to the age of the child (Connor, 2010). It is important to note that play has multiple approaches and that children’s play varies greatly according to culture, interests,

Based on relevant reading and personal experience outline the theoretical rationale for play in the development of young children.

Play contributes to children’s “physical, emotional and social well-being” (Else, 2009, p.8) and through play, the child’s holistic development and well-being is being constantly accounted for as is it led by the individual. The child decides what s/he wants to do and does it; it is

During the preschool years, they start to interact with each other by creating complex story lines together. As they do this, they learn to negotiate, cooperate, and share (though some kids don't master the art of sharing until they're 4 to 6 years old). When children disagree about who gets to be the daddy or who will wear the purple dress, they're actually developing important social skills, says Sara Wilford, director of the Early Childhood Program at Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, New York. How you can boost social play: Once your child

Play is the foundation stone of children’s healthy and productive lives (Oliver & Klugman, 2002) and is also a significant means of child’s learning and development (Zigler, Singer & Bishop-

“For young children, there is no distinction between play and learning; they are one and the same. Playing is a priority in early childhood, yet not all play is the same” (Butler, 2008, p. 1). Since the beginning of mankind children have imitated adults and learned to survive through play. Evidence of this includes toys and board games from 6,000 years ago that have been found in Egypt and Asia (Dollinger, 2000). In the last two centuries, child’s play has been observed and studied by theorists and recognized as an important tool for adult life. Three theorists that studied children and spent their lives researching how children develop were Erik Erikson, Jean Piaget and Lev Vygotsky. These theorists agreed that from the time a child is

Alice Sterling Honig, author of an article “Play: Ten Power Boosts for Children’s Early Learning”, states that “children gain powerful knowledge and useful social skills through play” (p.126). Honig, who believes that play is essential for young children’s development, points out ten ways in which children can learn through play activity.

What is play? Play is “a recreational activity; especially the spontaneous activity of children.” (Webster, 2010) Play is such a basic function and daily routine in a child’s life. Although the roles of play and the types of play change though age, it all incorporates in the growth and development of a child.