Introduction
The ultimate goal of any learning process is to equip the targeted individuals with superior skills and ideas for confronting future challenges and pursuing their aims in life confidently. Researchers and scholars in the field of education have succeeded in presenting numerous ideas to improve the learning process and support the needs of more beneficiaries. Many theorists and experts believe that parents and teachers should consider various exercises since they can have a positive role in classrooms and home-based educational environments. Play based programs are significant in children’s development because they contribute immensely to their social, emotional, cognitive, mental, and psychological wellbeing while empowering them to learn more about themselves, identify the dangers and opportunities they might encounter in their respective communities, and be aware of life and how to pursue it diligently as adults.
Why Play Based Programs are Significant in Children’s Development
Through effective, timely, and age-specific play, more children find it easier to record meaningful personal development by discovering themselves, learning more about their interests, expanding their abilities, and identifying limitations that can affect their current and future achievements. These activities are essential because they empower the targeted beneficiaries to imagine, monitor the way others behave, and explore the opportunities available in their respective environments. Dankiw et al. (2020) give the example of puzzles and charades to describe and examine how they can guide more learners to improve their memory skills, acquire new attitudes, build their vocabularies, and understand how to respond effectively to others depending on the existing situation. They will apply their current competencies acquired from such exercises to learn how they can get along with their playmates and adults. Throughout such plays, the children will be able to move, observe, experiment, and analyze (Darling-Churchill & Lippman, 2016). Their interactions and experiences will ensure that they monitor the responses of the adults around them. A natural influence takes place whereby the beneficiaries record significant physical, cognitive, emotional, and social development. With this kind of knowledge, it would be relevant for teachers and parents to encourage and guide their children to engage in a wide range of play based activities (Barnett, 2018). There is a need to repeat such procedures every single day to reinforce the intended skills and eventually make the learning process successful. The objective should be to create the best environment that facilitates both playing and acquisition of superior skills that will support the developmental goals.
Play is an evidence-based practice that offers the best opportunity for guardians, teachers, and parents to engage their children fully, guide them to learn more about their weaknesses, help them identify their specific strengths, and provide personalized support that eventually results in personal growth and development. Through the supervision of these adults, the targeted children will understand how they can interact with the surrounding world, explore it, and identify some of the fears that could affect their experiences and goals (Dankiw et al., 2020). They will understand how they can conquer them and practice specific roles that are adult in nature, such as cooking, riding, and driving. Such practices make it easier for them to acquire additional competencies and combine them with their original ones. This opportunity enhances their confidence levels, thereby making them more resilient and capable of tackling most of the emerging challenges they have to face. When parents and teachers assume the role of observers, such children will realize the importance of groups and how they can improve their problem-solving abilities. They will report any form of mistreatment and be free to make their unique decisions. Such beneficiaries will engage in specific actions that resonate with their passions, discover their expectations, and consider some of the best strategies to become successful children (Darling-Churchill & Lippman, 2016). These skills will make it easier for them to become responsible, hardworking, and focused young individuals who can change their experiences. These achievements will ensure that such children develop additional skills and eventually learn how to solve their problems and those of others, make informed decisions, and engage in practical activities that can make the wider society a better place for all.
Play is a powerful tool that makes it possible for the targeted to children to pull together their creative and logical parts of their brains, thereby making it easier for them to learn successfully. Since underage individuals learn differently in comparison with adults, the inclusion of the proposed play based programs will ensure that they compare a wide range of items and examine their physical properties. They will consider how they behave when pulled, pushed, or thrown. They will also interact with one another through play and learn how to analyze and respond to the emotions their colleagues or classmates exhibit during these exercises. Through such activities, they will be in a position to experience and create their unique imaginations. The targeted play activities will guide them to fine tune their comprehension and motor skills. Some of the most appropriate exercises can include dancing, rolling, running, or even kicking balls (Im et al., 2019). Such programs will guide the beneficiaries to improve their emotional muscles and become more imaginative. Throughout such activities, they will acquire additional strategies for regulating their emotions, identifying the nature of the existing situation, and eventually acquiring the intended concepts or instructions. This analysis reveals that majority of children who are allowed to play will have higher chances of learning and succeeding in their respective classes. Dankiw et al. (2020) reveal that children who are encouraged to play will become more creative and be in a position to complete various tasks much faster. This example supports the identified thesis by encouraging educationists to consider the importance of relying on the use of play based programs.
When teachers, guardians, and parents allow their young children to play, they will get a new opportunity to develop better language competencies, be in a position to control their emotions, become more creative, and record advanced social skills that improve their knowledge about life. Im et al. (2019) indicate that individuals who are allowed to engage in similar programs will be able to imagine and think about the realities around them. The child’s sense or taste for mental and physical adventure will increase significantly. Through such practices, more learners will acquire a wide range of competencies that can guide them to socialize and be prepared for their future roles and goals in life (Barnett, 2018). For instance, they will understand how they can solve problems during plays and be able to apply such developments in their day-to-day experiences. The idea of teamwork is quite outstanding since children who play widely will take it seriously. This outcome is usually possible since underage learners would prefer to play together and acquire the intended concepts. The art of sharing becomes a reality since the individuals would be willing to offer advice and material support to their colleagues (Im et al., 2019). With the acquisition of these skills through continuous play, the identified beneficiaries can grow up and become informed people who can solve their common challenges, relate positively with others, and implement powerful strategies to solve most of the issues affecting their experiences and those of their friends and neighbors (Darling-Churchill & Lippman, 2016). This understanding explains why educationists and policymakers should introduce play based learning programs in every class. They need to design such activities depending on a number of attributes, such as age and cultural norms.
Conclusion
The above discussion has supported the introduction of play based programs in learning environments since they can support children’s development by contributing immensely to their social, emotional, cognitive, mental, and psychological wellbeing while empowering them to learn more about themselves and life in general. Parents and educators who allow their children to engage in playful activities will learn how solve problems, relate positively with others, embrace the idea of teamwork, know how to respond to challenging situations, and make decisions that can support their developmental milestones. The outlined arguments are worth considering and replicating in different home settings and classrooms to ensure that more children benefit from play based educational programs and eventually become successful adults. The involvement of all key stakeholders to introduce such strategies in different learning institutions could change the situation and make it possible for more children to have better lives.
References
Barnett, L. A. (2018). Developmental benefits of play for children. Journal of Leisure Research, 22(2), 138-153.
Dankiw, K. A., Tsiros, M. D., Baldock, K. L., & Kumar, S. (2020). The impacts of unstructured nature play on health in early childhood development: A systematic review. PLoS ONE, 15(2), e0229006.
Darling-Churchill, K. E., & Lippman, L. (2016). Early childhood social and emotional development: Advancing the field of measurement. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 45, 1-7.
Im, G. W., Jiar, Y. K., & Talib, R. B. (2019). Development of preschool social emotional inventory for preschoolers: A preliminary study. International Journal of Evaluation and Research in Education, 8(1), 158-164. Web.