Children like to play. Children like to play because its fun. But play is so much more than fun. A child learns through play. It is his way of thinking, remembering, trying out, testing, proving, creating, absorbing - making sense of the world around him and how he fits in.
Learning Through Play
Play is an inborn and vital part of a young life. It is natural, it happens spontaneously in a growing child. If a child's basic needs are satisfied, she will express herself through play. This is good because play serves many purposes.
Through play, a child can exercise her large and small muscles. In a game of "Shadow Tag" for instance, arms, legs and the whole body are involved. Playing "doctor" may involve finer, smaller movements as a stethoscope is used, pills are given, or bandages are put on.
Play gives preschoolers a chance to exercise their developing minds by encouraging their imaginations. Pretending allws them to experimen with new concepts and to represent many different things, persons, and events in their lives. Anna may not be able to be Cinderelly, but she can pretend to be. Or Connor in real life may or may not have seen a death, but in his play he will explore the idea of death and dying by pretending to shoot and kill or pretending to die and to be dead. He is trying to understand the happenings in the real world.
Recently my daughter had to have dental work done. It was done over 3 visits. After the first she was scared to go back. I walked in on her playing "dentist" with her babies. She was talking to them in a reassuring manner, much like the way one of the technicians spoke to her. This allowed her to release some of the fear of going back, and having them poke around in her mouth. This kind of play is valuable in rehearsing real-life experiences.
Through your child's play you
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