The Cridge Childcare Services

Why is Play Important?

Mr. Rogers said this about play: “Play is often talked about as if it were a relief from serious learning. But for children, play is serious learning. Play is really the work of childhood.”

We used to believe that it was our job as parents and caregivers to ‘teach’ our children, to provide them with all the answers and to train them to write their names and the ABCs. We now know that the best learning for children takes place during their playtime. They make discoveries about what does and does not work, how to negotiate for a turn, and how to understand the world around them.  Our job is to facilitate their play and to provide them opportunities to explore and discover; to give them a chance to ask questions (and then to give them the time to find the answer on their own). “Why did the blocks fall down this time? How do I need to stack them differently?” or “What would happen if I mixed these colours together?” This type of play and these questions form the basis of scientific thinking and the desire for learning, which is a lifelong gift. Children will learn to write their name and count to 1033, don’t sweat it! Give your child time to play and you will be giving them the biggest tool they will ever need.  Not only that, it’s a lot of fun!