{"id":2599,"date":"2026-05-18T02:32:37","date_gmt":"2026-05-18T02:32:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/okanaganfamilymagazine.ca\/?p=2599"},"modified":"2026-05-18T02:32:40","modified_gmt":"2026-05-18T02:32:40","slug":"the-benefits-of-play-in-children","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/okanaganfamilymagazine.ca\/?p=2599","title":{"rendered":"The Benefits of Play in Children"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

by Marie Hartwell-Walker, Ed.D.\u00a0 \u2022\u00a0 Psych Central www.psychcentral.com<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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One of the most important gifts we can give our kids is time to play, both as a family and on their own. Finding time to play with kids can be a challenge if you are working, managing a household and meeting the many day-to-day challenges of getting things done.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But play isn\u2019t optional. It\u2019s essential.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Play is considered so important to child development that it has been recognized by the United Nations High Commission for Human Rights as a right of every child. Play \u2014 or free, unstructured time in the case of older children and adolescents \u2014 is essential to the cognitive, physical, social, and emotional well-being of children and youth. Play as a family weaves the ties of love and connection that bind family members together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 Play is needed for healthy brain development<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 Pretend play stimulates your child\u2019s imagination and creativity<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 Play develops the brain\u2019s executive function<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 Play develops a child\u2019s \u2018theory of mind\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Physical skills, emotional regulation, flexible thinking, the ability to get along with others and the confidence to try new things and think outside the box are all keys to being successful in life. So what can parents do to ensure their children develop these important skills?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Encourage Free Play<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I love the notion of \u2018free\u2019. It means both \u2018unstructured\u2019 and \u2018with no cost\u2019. Both are essential for our growing kids.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yes, it\u2019s important to provide kids with experiences that teach them new skills and how to work and play in a team. Whether a kid participates in soccer, the orchestra, a dance team or any other organized activity, he will learn how to cooperate with a group goal and will develop physically and mentally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But it\u2019s equally important not to get so caught up in providing so many structured activities that our children don\u2019t have time to just hang out with other kids and figure out for themselves what to do with their time. Kids who are too involved in organized sports, classes and activities can end up not knowing how to entertain themselves. Kids who are kept occupied every minute don\u2019t have the time to flex their imagination muscles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further, when the adults provide all the ideas for leisure time and set all the rules, kids are deprived of learning important social skills. Free play gives kids the chance to learn to work with others and to make compromises. After all, a kid can\u2019t pretend to be a superhero without people to save. He can\u2019t learn to take turns if there isn\u2019t another kid who wants to be the hero too. If she wants other people to play with, she has to learn how to go along with others\u2019 ideas and to get along with the gang.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Think Before You Buy<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Free play comes for free. Resist the temptation to buy the latest video game, construction toy or costumes. Kids who don\u2019t have ready-made props for their play learn to improvise. Boxes and sofa cushions can become a fort. A superhero cape can be made out of a pillowcase. Dollhouse furniture can be created out of bottle caps and odds and ends from around the house. Kids who are encouraged to be creative by using what\u2019s available instead of what\u2019s in the store become more creative.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Play With Your Kids<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Play helps connect family members. When everyone in the family is occupied with their own personal screen for entertainment, they don\u2019t form the bonds with each other that come from enjoying time together. When everyone in the family spends some playtime laughing, giggling, and enjoying some spontaneous play, everyone feels good about themselves and everyone else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Parents who let their children direct the playtime learn much about their world. They can also provide some gentle guidance about positive behaviour and problem-solving, if necessary, as the pretend game unfolds. Board games help older kids learn how to take turns, follow rules and be both polite winners and gracious losers. Time around the game board promotes conversation and cooperation \u2014 and maybe some friendly competition. Best of all, when families play together, they tend to be more supportive of each other and more interested in each other\u2019s lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So shut down the screens for an hour or two after dinner a few times a week. Find that Chutes and Ladders game or that deck of cards that\u2019s at the bottom of the toy box. Throw a sheet over the table to make a cozy tent. Hand out paper plates and challenge everyone to make an outrageous hat. Play hide and seek with the little ones and charades with the older kids.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Resist the \u2018do I have to\u2019s\u2019 and the protests about limiting screen time. Get into it 100 percent yourself. Make it fun. Make them laugh. Soon the kids \u2014 and you \u2014 will be looking forward to enjoying playing together. It\u2019s an important part of what family is all about.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Dr. Marie Hartwell-Walker<\/a>, Ed.D. is an author, licensed psychologist, and a marriage and family therapist who has been in practice for more than 35 years. She specializes in couples and family therapy and parent education. She writes regularly for Psych Central<\/a> as well as Psych Central\u2019s Ask the Therapist feature. She is author of the insightful parenting e-book, Tending the Family Heart. Check out her book, Unlocking the Secrets of Self-Esteem.\u00a0 \u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Marie Hartwell-Walker, Ed.D.\u00a0 \u2022\u00a0 Psych Central www.psychcentral.com One of the most important gifts we can give our kids is time to play, both as a family and on their own. Finding time to play with kids can be a challenge if you are working, managing a household and meeting the many day-to-day challenges of … Read More “The Benefits of Play in Children”<\/span> »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/okanaganfamilymagazine.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2599"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/okanaganfamilymagazine.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/okanaganfamilymagazine.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/okanaganfamilymagazine.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/okanaganfamilymagazine.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2599"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/okanaganfamilymagazine.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2599\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2601,"href":"https:\/\/okanaganfamilymagazine.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2599\/revisions\/2601"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/okanaganfamilymagazine.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2599"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/okanaganfamilymagazine.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2599"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/okanaganfamilymagazine.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2599"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}