The Power of Play: Why Playing is Important for Healthy Child Development

The Importance of Play

“It is paradoxical that many educators and parents still differentiate between a time for learning and a time for play without seeing the vital connection between them.” – Leo F. Buscaglia

Play is an essential part of growing up but many parents are losing sight on its importance as they succumb to the competitive nature of today’s world, seeking to put their children’s time to “more constructive use”. Here are some of the benefits of free play:

it helps children learn about the world they live in
it builds self-esteem
it builds social skills (in fact, research has shown that children who play with their parents develop superior social skills in later life)
it allows children to work out their feelings
it helps language development
it allows children to act out roles beyond their years through “pretend play”
it stimulates creativity and imagination

From the Child Development Guide.

“Daniel Goleman argues that ‘Emotional Intelligence’ is a more influential factor determining a child’s future than his IQ, therefore play has to be recognised as the cornerstone of education for young children, because it is the one single activity that provides simultaneously for intellectual and emotional development.”

More on the importance of play.

If you’re still wondering about the importance of play, you should listen to Stuart Brown talk about why play is vital – no matter what your age. Who is Stuart Brown? He was the guy who first discovered that a common thread in murderers was that they all lacked play during their childhood. When interviewing thousands of people to catalog their relationships with play, he noticed a strong correlation between success and playful activity.

“Humor, games, roughhousing, flirtation and fantasy are more than just fun. Plenty of play in childhood makes for happy, smart adults — and keeping it up can make us smarter at any age. Stuart Brown’s research shows play is not just joyful and energizing — it’s deeply involved with human development and intelligence.” Here’s the video on his talk on TED:

The Power of “Interactive” Play Parenting Workshop by Fisher-Price

This Saturday (16 June 2012) Fisher-Price will be bringing child development expert; Ms. Carrie Lupoli, Founder of Live & Learn (Singapore) to Malaysia where she will be able to share the importance of interactive play with children.

Through The Power of “Interactive” Play Workshop, Fisher-Price would like to share the benefits of play through the five development stages (Sensory Stimulation, Sitting & Reaching, Speech Development, On the Go and Walker & Rider) and to further encourage adults to spend more time with children.

The Power of “Interactive” Play Parenting Workshop will exhibit the different kinds of activities and exercises that adults can have with children. It will further elaborate on the different tools that can be used to further assist with the different development stages of children.

Date: 16th June 2012 (Saturday)
Time: 10.00am – 1.30pm
Location: Grand Ballroom, Empire Hotel Subang, Jalan SS 16/1, Ss 16, 47500 Selangor.
Cost: RM60 per person plus over RM100 worth of goodies.

For more information or to book your seats:

Contact: 03-7803 5310/012-292 1378
Email: admin@mamababyworld.com

About the author

Shen-Li is a stay-home mum to two boys who have been the inspiration for her interest in early childhood development and early child education. She searches for the balance in child development methods and the educational philosophies that will enable the nurture of happy, confident and successful children. She shares her views and findings at Figur8.