Why is Imaginative Play important?

Why is imaginative play important?

• ·         Toys can stunt your child’s cognitive and emotional development.
• ·         Imagination (fantasy play, make-believe & role-play) are powerful tools for building self –discipline.
• ·         Poor self-regulation is associated with high dropout rates, drug use and crime.

The following article was written by Janet Beyrooti, Headmistress of Curro Aurora Nursery School and director of “Pro-Ed Training” (Accredited Early Childhood Development College.)

It's interesting to me that when we talk about play today, the first thing that comes to mind is toys; whereas, during the 19th century, play would be thought of as an activity, rather than an object.

During the school holidays I read Howard Chudacoff’s most recent research which focuses on the history of childhood. He argues that for most of human history what children did when they played was roam in packs large or small, more or less unsupervised, and engaged in freewheeling imaginative play. They were pirates and princesses, aristocrats and action heroes. Basically, says Chudacoff, they spent most of their time doing what looked like nothing much at all!

I am sure most parents and teachers can remember the days when we improvised play, whether it was outdoors, in the street or even in a friend’s back garden. We improvised our own play; we regulated our play and we made up our own rules.

During the second half of the 20th century, play changed radically. Instead of children spending their time in autonomous shifting make-believe, they were supplied with ever more specific toys and predetermined scripts for play. Essentially, instead of playing pirates with a tree branch they played Star Wars with a toy light saber. Chudacoff called this the commercialization and co-optation of child's play — a trend which begins to shrink the size of children's imaginative space.

However, commercialization is not the only reason imagination came under siege. In the second half of the 20th century South African parents became increasingly concerned about safety, and were driven to create play environments that were secure and could not be penetrated by threats of the outside world.

Moving into secure housing areas, keeping children indoors — these create safe environments for children.

Parents also did something more, middle-class parents increasingly worried about academic achievement, therefore offering to enrich a child's mind, forgetting to let the child play.

Evidently the way that children spend their time has changed.

A growing number of psychologists believe that these changes in what children do has also changed children’s cognitive and emotional development.

These changes in the type of play children engage in have seriously affected self-regulation, academic success and emotional development!

So why is it important for your child to practice good self-regulation?

We know that children's capacity for self-regulation has diminished. A recent study replicated a study of self-regulation first done in the late 1940s, in which psychological researchers asked children ages 3, 5 and 7 to do a number of exercises. One of those exercises included standing perfectly still without moving.

The 3-year-olds couldn't stand still at all; the 5-year-olds could do it for about three minutes, and the 7-year-olds could stand pretty much as long as the researchers asked.

In 2001, researchers repeated this experiment. But, psychologist Elena Bodrova at Mid-Continent Research for Education and Learning says, the results were very different.

Today's 5-year-olds were acting at the level of 3-year-olds 60 years ago, and today's

7-year-olds were barely approaching the level of a 5-year-old 60 years ago,"  Bodrova explains. "So the results were very sad."

Why Sad?

Because self-regulation is incredibly important! Poor self-regulation is associated with high dropout rates, drug use and crime. In fact, good self-regulation is a better predictor of success in school than a child's IQ.

Children who are able to manage their feelings and pay attention are better able to learn. Self-regulation predicts effective development in virtually every domain.

The reason make-believe is such a powerful tool for building self-discipline is because during make-believe, children engage in what's called private speech. Children talk to themselves about what they are going to do and how they are going to do it.

Children who are good self-regulators are able to remain focused on actual lessons and can easily sit at a desk for long periods.

Parents and teachers who encourage play with only objects will certainly inhibit imaginative play. Children are not given the chance to practice policing themselves. When they are given these opportunities, the results are clear and self-regulation improves.

Rules for Play:

·         Play must be in a safe environment.

·         Play must not always be with high-tech toys.

·         Play must have a purpose.

·         Play can be with cardboard boxes, twigs and all that nature brings!

·         And play can just be running around the garden pretending…….