You will often hear educators speak about the importance of play in preschool. In fact, play is considered to be such an integral part of child development that it's now recognised by the UN High Commission for Human Rights as a right for every child.
Play is the basic foundation for learning for young children; though we often think of it as playing with toys or running around. It is how children begin to understand the world and form bonds with other children. Play also allows children to exercise their creativity, imagination and to develop problem-solving skills.
Here are a few ways your young one can benefit through play:
Improve communication skills
Play gives an opportunity for children and parents to connect with each other. Most of the time, young children lack the language skills to fully communicate their ideas and concerns to their parents. These are prominent themes in play that will help children communicate better with their parents.
Develop strong social relationships
During early childhood, children begin to form attachments to their families, teachers, and peers through play. These relationships are important for making a child feel secure, loved, and supported, all of which affects their learning and happiness.
Develop problem-solving skills
Play provides the opportunity for children to solve complex problems on their own. For instance, playing with blocks presents children with many challenging scenarios: how can they balance them? How tall can they make that castle? Your child will also gain a sense of confidence once they solve a problem in the end.
Learn social skills
Play is where children can practice a lot of important social skills, like sharing, leading, showing respect, and empathising with other children.
Regulate behaviour
Play is one of the best ways for children to learn how to regulate their behaviour. This includes learning how to concentrate on a task, take turns, or exercising self-discipline.
Have fun and relaxation
Most importantly, play is relaxing and is one of the best joys of childhood. You'll often hear adults saying how they miss the carefree days of their childhood and you might even think the same sometimes!
Play is an important part of childhood that has a lot of benefits for young children. Through play, children can learn new things, solve problems, learn to socialise, and view learning as a fun activity.
At 3 Bees Early Learning Centre, our goal is to foster our young students' curiosity and eagerness to play. Our learning environment is designed to encourage play that:
- entitles children to express their personality and uniqueness
- enhances dispositions such as curiosity and creativity
- enables children to make connections between prior and new learning
- assist children to develop relationships and concepts
If you are looking for an child care centre in Oakleigh, please feel free to get in touch by calling at 03 9504 3668.