Play

Children’s Right to Play

•The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989) believes that children have a right to live and play in a loving environment that is age-appropriate and stimulating.

What is play?

Play is natural for young children, adults, and animals. It facilitates physical, social, emotional, cognitive, and language development. Play can take place both indoors and outdoors. In order to provide the desired experience, provide children with “loose parts" and "Loose, unstructured dream time”  (Louv, 2005, p.117)

The Benefits of Play

According to the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), play is an active form of learning that unites the mind, body, and spirit. Play reduces the tension that often comes with expectations to achieve. Play provides a healthy avenue for expressing and working out emotional aspects of everyday experiences. Play helps children develop the ability to see things from another person’s point of view. Play helps children gain competence in moving through the larger world  (Bredekamp and Copple, 1997, as cited in Wilson, 2008, p.3).