“Play is serious learning,” Mr. Fred Rodgers said it, and many before him felt the same way. That hasn’t changed. It will never change. We continue to see the most value in basic toys; the activities where you use your imagination, your hands, your whole body, and your social skills. The kind of toys that I am talking about are blocks, balls, playdough, puzzles, musical instruments, play food, plastic people/animals, and books!
As the shopping season is before us, I just wanted to take a moment to talk (rant) about the basics and just how important they are. Remember what I have said before: If it has a battery, rethink it! Do you really need another car with lights or another firetruck with a siren? Get some wooden cars and trucks without all of the sounds, and instead make the sounds yourself! That is so much more fun (and cheaper).
But, Why?
Why is play so important? Research shows (It’s not just me!) that children learn social skills, fine/gross motor skills, language skills, problem-solving, confidence building, and so much more from simply playing. Studies tell of the importance of play at a very young age. By playing in pretend situations, a child can: act things out, negotiate, and build social skills. At a very young age children are learning about the world around them and how to interact and engage. For a young child, play is extremely important for brain development and cognition.
Play is Meaningful
Play is a prerequisite to practically all of our life lessons and every activity or job you could think of.
It’s so important for us to think of play as engagement with toys and other individuals; the kind of play where we learn patience, turn-taking, joint attention, following directions, cooperation, imitation and functional language.
Engage your child in play. Some children need to be shown how to play. Sit on the floor with your two-year-old and show her how to brush a doll’s hair or run a car down a home-made ramp made out of cardboard. Show her how to make the sounds of each animal and vehicle in her toybox. She may not imitate you at first but keep trying.
If a child is not engaging with toys appropriately or at all, then it’s our jobs as parents, teachers, therapists, and caregivers to provide the model.
- Begin with one activity a day and build from there.
- Provide an engaging environment for your child to explore, visually and physically.
- Keep toys within your child’s reach to encourage exploration and play.
Social Play
Social play and engagement really makes the most difference. It may take many hours of children observing others, and socially engaging before it becomes a routine (either in scheduled play or within daily routines).
If you’re not sure where to start, ask your child’s teachers or therapists for some strategies and ideas. Below are some great beginning tasks to get you started.
Show kids how to play!
- Create your own games of having plastic animals go in and out of Duplo caves. Make the animal sounds.
- Stamp dinosaur tracks in playdough. Make shapes from cookie cutters.
- Create a photo album.
- Build shapes with popsicle sticks.
- Make playdough in your favorite colors.
- Decorate a recycled plastic jar to use as your “clean up” container.
- Collect items from around the house to place in your bean bin.
- Engage in some holiday fun.
- Make a table cloth and pretend to have a picnic or tea party.
- Put together some play kits with just a few pieces each to grab when you have a few minutes to engage.
Most importantly of all, just enjoy the moments that you have with your kiddo! You don’t have to sit on the floor with them all day long to have a lasting impact. Start with a brief activity and encourage longer engagement times each time you play.
Start new habits of play during specific times of the day so your child expects it, and you will notice more attention, eye contact and engagement.
Remember that you don’t have to spend a lot of money on toys to make a difference in your child’s play behaviors and tolerance. Start with the basics and add more as you and your child are ready.