Whether your child plays at home or in a child care facility, you will soon learn how beneficial the experience is. Play incorporates many aspects of a child’s life, and the more you encourage it, the more benefits they receive. From the treehouse in your backyard to the swing set and their indoor puzzles, all these items play a part in childhood development.
Of course, children play because they like to have fun, but were you aware of these benefits below?
Literacy
Whether your child plays by themselves or with other children at a child care facility, their literacy levels are improving all the time. Believe it or not, play enables your children to expand their vocabulary, learn new sounds, and get creative with their imagination when playing with other children. Through play, you set a foundation for literacy.
Communication
The more your children play with others, the better it is for their communication. When they take part in activities, storytelling, imagination games and teamwork, they are having to pick up on cues, offer cues, and communicate with all children involved in the game.
Learning
Children never stop learning, and playtime is no exception to that rule. Even from a baby, playtime is another opportunity to learn – with motor skills and overall development. Even when your baby picks up a rattle and shakes it, they’ve learnt that moving something can create sounds. They also learn those new sounds. Have you ever stopped to think why all those toys at your baby’s child care facility are so noisy? They are educational toys.
Space
When your children engage in play – be it inside or outside, they are learning their boundaries while practicing physical movement at the same time. Playtime outside is also particularly important as it offers your children the opportunity to find out their limits – even if it means mum and dad need to stop themselves from trying to reign in the situation.
Beneficial for Adults
There will come a time in your life where you play for the last time. You’ll pick up your toys for the last time. You’ll climb a tree for the last time and take part in imaginary games with your friends for the very last time. It’s a sad thought, but the transition from child to young adult happens faster than you think.
Then, when you’ve grown up and had children of your own, their eagerness to play offers you the opportunity to regain a sense of that childhood. You can take part in their fantasy games, rough and tumble, and be a child with your children. These are the memories that both you and your children will remember forever.
Play is more than just sitting down with a toy or kicking a ball around. Play incorporates education, opportunities, and skills that children require to turn into well-rounded adults. Don’t be afraid to spend time playing with your children or enrolling them in child care so they can make the most of it as well.