Play why is it important

Ginsburg, K. The importance of play in promoting healthy child development and maintaining strong parent-child bonds. Pediatrics , 1 , Isenberg, J. Childhood Education , 79 1 , Rushton, S. Neuroscience, play and early childhood education: Connections, implications and assessment.

Early Childhood Education Journal , 37 5 , Having fun together during play time enables children to experience pleasure and joy. Play helps children develop social skills Play is important for learning the social skills including language and communication that develop over time and will be the foundation for future relationships. Through play, children learn about: the give and take of relationships with friends negotiating how their behaviour can affect others and to develop empathy how to lead and follow repairing relationships.

Play helps children develop emotional skills Through play, children can express their feelings, even before they have the words to say how they feel. Become part of their game rather than trying to dictate the play. In pretend play, let your child call the shots, make the rules, and determine the pace of play. The best way to teach a new skill is to show children how something works, then step back and give them a chance to try it.

Make play age-appropriate and consider safety. If a game is too hard or too easy, it loses its sense of pleasure and fun. Help your child find age-appropriate activities and understand any safety rules for play. Nothing ruins a fun game faster than a child getting hurt.

Incorporating more fun and play into your daily life can improve the quality of your relationships, as well as your mood and outlook. Even in the most difficult of times, taking time away from your troubles to play or laugh can go a long way toward making you feel better. Laughter makes you feel good. And the positive feeling that comes from laughter and having fun remains with you even after the giggles subside. Play and laughter help you retain a positive, optimistic outlook through difficult situations, disappointments, and loss.

Fearing rejection, embarrassment or ridicule when trying to be playful is understandable. Adults often worry that being playful will get them labeled as childish. But what is so wrong with that? Children are incredibly creative, inventive and are constantly learning. You can reclaim your inner child by setting aside regular, quality playtime. The more you play, joke, and laugh—the easier it becomes.

Try to clear your schedule for an afternoon or evening, for example, and then turn off your phone, TV, computer, and other devices.

And enjoy the change of pace. Arrange nights out with work colleagues: bowling, playing pool, miniature golf, or singing karaoke. Schedule time in a park or at the beach to throw a Frisbee or fly a kite with friends. Play with a pet. Puppies, especially, make very willing playmates. Surround yourself with playful people. Joke with strangers at a bus stop or in a checkout line. Visit a magic store and learn some tricks. Or invest in art supplies, construction toys, or science kits and create something new.

Play with children. Goofing around with kids helps you experience the joy of play from their perspective. Proyer, R. Luria, J. Kaufman Eds. Academic Press. Examining playfulness in adults: Testing its correlates with personality, positive psychological functioning, goal aspirations, and multi-methodically assessed ingenuity.

Psychological Test and Assessment Modeling, 54 2 , — The well-being of playful adults: Adult playfulness, subjective well-being, physical well-being, and the pursuit of enjoyable activities. The European Journal of Humour Research, 1 1 , 84— Guitard, P.

Toward a Better Understanding of Playfulness in Adults. This holiday season alone, millions of people will turn to HelpGuide for free mental health guidance and support.

So many people rely on us in their most difficult moments. Can we rely on you? They try out new vocabulary, on their own or with friends, and exercise their imagination through storytelling. Play is learning. Play takes many forms, from shaking a rattle to peek-a-boo to hide-and-seek.

Play can be done by a child alone, with another child, in a group or with an adult. Play encourages adults to communicate with the children in their lives. Adults support play by giving children opportunities to play, and by knowing when to intervene, and when not to intervene. Play gives children the chance to be spontaneous.