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It’s time to play!

It’s time to play!

It’s time to play!

As parents, it is delightful to see our children laugh and have a good time. They jump and crawl, they hide and draw! But children are not just playing! They are actively working on their neurological and biological development. In other words, children engage in creative and fun activities that ultimately help them become independent individuals. 

What is considered play?

An activity that is child-directed, spontaneous, and rewarding.

This blog will cover the importance of play in children’s development and how occupational therapists incorporate play as a key strategy in therapeutic sessions. 

So much happens through play!                       

Did you know that most of the brain’s development occurs in the first years of life? Around 80% of brain development is completed by age three and 90 % by age five. Play is key to developing various regions of the brain. While kids play, they are developing several skills needed in order to thrive later in life.  

  • Physical development: Play promotes the development of fine and gross motor skills by strengthening the muscles of the body.  Children learn body control, balance, and coordination.
  • Cognitive development: Play allows for healthy brain development. While playing, children acquire and practice executive function skills, such as planning, initiating, completing, and re-evaluating. Their participation through peer feedback and direct consequences both positive and negative. Playing works on memory and attention. It encourages the use of creativity and imagination, which is important when shaping lived experiences and enhancing mental health. Children also get a chance to improve their verbalization skills when playing with others.
  • Emotional development: Play provides the perfect scenario for children to express emotions and communicate feelings. It helps children develop self-regulation and self-confidence. Play also helps to reduce anxiety and depression symptoms.
  • Social development: Playing provides an opportunity to interact with others and learn what is expected of us in a group setting, such as sharing and communicating. They learn what behaviors are acceptable and which ones are not, and how to control aggressive behavior.
  • Moral development: Play teaches about following rules and how to react when one wins or loses. It introduces values, such as empathy, respect, and teamwork.

As therapists, we understand that play is vital to a child’s development. Therefore, play is prevalent in our therapy sessions as a way to motivate and engage the child while developing their skills. We use play as a dual strategy to address goals and motivate the child. For instance, playing “Earth is lava”, where a child steps or jumps on uneven surfaces, promotes balance and gross motor skills. Catching and throwing a ball is a great way to work on bilateral coordination. Also, playing with beads and Legos help strengthen the small muscles of the hand needed for handwriting. 

Remember that play has many purposes.

One essential element to play includes the role of parents and other adults (such as teachers) in early stages of play development. Parents act as facilitators to promote diversity in play. Parents are encouraged to ask questions and introduce new toys and rules during play time. But remember that play should be child-driven. Therefore, it is important for your children to use their imagination to come up with play ideas. Play is also an amazing way to spend quality time with your child. By spending time with them, you are telling them that you prioritize them, which teaches them about self-importance. Your child’s self-esteem gets a boost. From these early interactions, children develop a positive vision of the world and gain a sense of their place in it. Here are three suggestions for parents when playing with their children;

  1. Ask questions about the play situation; what is happening now? 
  2. Provide opportunities for children to interact with other children
  3. Help children perform more complex pretend play

 Parents  & children should play together!

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