Jean-Philip Desjardins
Play!
![Play!]()
Is Play! A Powerful Learning Tool For Children? Play is a fundamental aspect of childhood development. It enables children to express themselves through self-directed activities that offer social, physical and intellectual rewards. Play also teaches children about shapes, colors, cause and effect, and social and physical skills. Moreover, it engages children's creativity. A good play environment should include a variety of activities and games. Recent research has shown that play can be a powerful learning tool. Its power depends on the involvement of an adult who encourages children to engage in pretend play and other playful forms. Children who are not encouraged to engage in pretend play will learn through tasks, stories, and organized games, rather than through play. Whether or not play is fundamental to children's development will depend on how the parent or teacher encourages it. Children's play is usually characterized by four distinct stages. The first stage is called unoccupied play. In this stage, children move around randomly, without any purpose, but still play. The second stage is known as symbolic play, where children use objects to represent a concept or idea. These more structured forms of play involve rules and norms, and involve physical activity. Both kinds of play involve imagination and creativity. Children's play can lead to the development of specific gross motor skills, thinking skills, and social interactions. To encourage and facilitate this growth, parents can provide materials that encourage expressive play. Some materials include tempera paints, fingerpaints, watercolors, crayons, and drawing paper. Other items include water, sponges, and beanbags. Even if you're unable to provide all the materials, you can still get involved in the child's creative play.
