The question “Why is it important for parents to play with their children?” is probably the least asked question by those who need to ask the question – the parents themselves!
Here are 5 reasons why it is important for parents to play with their children:
1. The Connecting Bridge
Play can be a beautiful bridge that can emotionally connect children with their parents or caregivers and create a strong bond between them. When parents watch and observe their children play, they get to know their thoughts better.
2. Secure and Happy
When parents get involved in the play their child plays, they get the wonderful opportunity to see the world from a child’s point of view. As for the children, when their parents play with them, they feel very secure and happy.
3. Better Communication
Parents become better and effective communicators when they participate and become part of their children’s play world. This helps them to better nurture and guide their child so that they can grow into happy, healthy and responsible adults.
Also Read | 4 Best Play Activities to Promote Holistic Development and Learning
4. The Greatest Gift
The simplest yet the greatest and the most important gift parents can give their child is – ample time to play. If they would like to better that, all it takes for them is to make time to play with their children. That’s why it is important for parents to play with their child.
It may seem to be a big ask, as parents may find it challenging to find time in the world that we live in, where they are busy working hard to meet their day-to-day commitments and responsibilities. This is where parents need to look at it from the right context.
5. Childhood Happens Only Once!
From the child’s world view, playing and having fun time with their parents is priceless. It’s all about prioritizing what is more valuable. While childhood happens only once, early childhood lasts less than a decade, and it’s not too long a time you may think it is. Your childhood went like a breeze, kind of in just a snap. Isn’t it!?
Having looked at why it is important for you to play with your child as a parent, it would also help you understand the importance of play in early childhood development.
Importance of Play in Early Childhood Development
The importance of play in early childhood development is manifold and can have a highly constructive and profound impact in the child. Let us look at some of them:
Conquer Fear: Through play, children master the world while engaging and interacting to their surroundings. It is a medium through which they use their creativity to explore the world and conquer the fear while interacting with other children and adults.
Develop Competency: Play helps children develop new competencies which enhances their confidence and makes them grow stronger in terms of resilience to overcome any future challenges.
Leadership: Through informal or undirected play, children learn skills such as group work, sharing, negotiation, conflict resolution, etc. This helps them grow into future leaders who are also considerate and compassionate.
Decision Making: Play is a time during which children pursue full freedom and passion. For instance, when play is controlled by children themselves, they are free to make their own decisions and go about at their own pace.
Challenge Obesity: Engaging children in unstructured play may be a great way to increase a child’s physical activity levels, which could in turn help address the challenge of child obesity. Free play or unstructured time play in case of older children and adolescence is necessary to gain cognitive physical social and emotional well-being.
Connect with the External World: Play helps children develop a relationship with the outer world. The best thing about play is that it has all the characteristics that are opposite to passive entertainment, therefore helping to build active and healthy bodies.
Holistic Development: Play is the main ingredient in the educational environment, as it only through play a school can ensure that social, emotional as well as cognitive development happens in their wards.
Develop Creativity: Play is a medium through which a child develops creativity by using one’s own imagination, dexterity, and physical cognitive and emotional strength, therefore having a prominent role in creating a healthy brain.
Problem Solve: Play helps better children’s academic learning, behaviour, enhance readiness and improve problem-solving skills. What is interesting is that when play happens at an unscheduled time, it helps children to learn the social-emotional way.
Manage Conflicts: The importance of play in early childhood development, among many others, is that it creates opportunity for them to learn about how to get along with others and sort out the conflicts in life.
Self-Esteem: Daily play routine helps improving language and developing the growing fine and gross motor muscles. Play also encourages a child to be self-dependent creative and develop self-esteem.
Conclusion
If the question: “Why is it important for parents to play with their child?” were to be asked by every single parent, the way a child will experience childhood would be far more powerful, precious and valuable than otherwise.
Through play children learn about themselves and discover the world around them. Most of all, play is a simple joy that is beautiful, something that is to be cherished, and will be a very important part of an individual’s childhood memories.
Also Read | 3 Effective Ways How Holistic Development can be Promoted Through Play
Disclaimer: The content in this page and across this website are for informational and educational purposes only. In case of any concerns about your child’s growth and development, please contact your professional child healthcare provider.