Essay On Play In Early Childhood

Question 6

Play is a child’s main purpose in life. Some might say that play is a child’s job. All play is not just for entertainment or fun; play holds many benefits for child’s cognitive development. However, play is also important for the development of the whole child not just mentally, but physically as well as emotionally. Play can be incorporated into an early childhood setting and can be a successful learning tool to teach children math. Play is an important part of a child’s life and their development.

Play in some circles is looked down upon in some school districts and they are limiting play not only recess, but also play in the classroom as well. Policies such as No Child Left Behind have pushed teachers to focus on academics and test scores so the curriculum just did have time for play. Research has shown that the increase in academics during the early childhood years has been on the rise for years. Shepard and Smith (1988) argued that “formalized activities that occur to early deprive children of

Play is not the only way that children learn knowledge, but as teachers we should not underestimate the value of play on a child’s development; especially during early childhood. Children are naturally curious about the world around them, they need to experience the world. They need to make connections between knowledge and the real world.Vygotsky wrote that “play does provide an important context for learning and development” (as cited in Siraj-Blatchford, 2009, p.80). It is through play that a child will figure out how to interact with the world around them. Through this interaction children will begin to gather knowledge and experiences that will enhance their cognitive development. Without play children will learn certain concepts yet, children need play to develop and make sense of the knowledge they are