Meaningful Play
(Estimated Reading Time: 3 Minutes)
Being a parent is a full-time job. Raising a child is much more than just feeding and housing, you are directly responsible for your child's development and sense of awareness.
Giving your child room to express themselves while teaching them, can be a balancing act.
I know it sounds daunting but it can also be fun!
Start small by integrating meaningful play with your children!
What is meaningful play? “Meaningful play is play with an objective for the user to learn and explore content or ideas in a fun or enjoyable way. Meaningful play is intended to be activity or action driven with emphasis on the experience rather than the artifact or game.” as stated by Walter F. Drew, President of the Association for the Study of Play (TASP)
When it comes to meaningful play, there are a few things you should remember:
Allow your child to make their own decisions-
Giving your child options and the satisfaction of making a choice encourages them to think more freely. Infinite options can lead to confusion and indecisiveness. So keep their choices to a minimum. Would you like the red ball or the yellow ball?
Play is spontaneous, not scripted-
Try playing games without set rules, allow your child to test the boundaries of their interest and imagination. You never know what could be going through their head, so allow them the freedom to change their mind or try something new.
Play is enjoyable-
Play always has an emotional response attached to it. Without this emotional connection, the experience is simply an activity. You don’t always have to hover over your child and monitor their next move. They’ll only be this age once, let them know there is separation between work and play.
If you need ideas for meaningful play, here are a few options by Gan Hui Ning, Nicolette Abigail Yeo Wei Ling & Priscilla Tan Yan Ying from The New Age Parents E-Magazine to get you started!
Outdoor Activities-
Outdoor play allows children to interact with the natural environment and provides opportunities for holistic development. Nature walks allow them to use all their senses – encourage them to walk barefoot on the grass, observe the insects on the ground or smell the leaves and flowers. Our natural world offers beautiful sights, sounds, and textures, making it an ideal resource for the development of aesthetics for children.
Playing with Blocks-
Block play can create multiple learning opportunities for children that are purposeful and fun. There is so much flexibility and creativity involved in block play. You can recreate building structures that you and your child saw, show them famous monuments and architecture around the world, or simply let their imagination take flight. You can even use materials that are open-ended, accessible and low-cost. Such as cardboard boxes and plastic containers!
Dramatic Play-
Dramatic play is where children accept and take on roles then act them out. They can pretend to be something or someone else entirely without the fear of being judged. They dramatize situations through actions and movements to go hand in hand with the roles they have chosen to play. The real value of dramatic play is that it increases children’s understanding of the world they live in. In the process of dramatic play, they are encouraged to use their imagination, communicate, share their ideas and solve problems. This helps them develop personal skills that will nurture them to become successful learners in life.
Sources:
https://www.naeyc.org/our-work/families/five-essentials-meaningful-play
https://www.pgpedia.com/p/play-how-it-shapes-brain-opens-imagination-and-invigorates-soul
https://thenewageparents.com/meaningful-play-for-children/