Kids on the coast

Play is a vital part of our children’s healthy development and through play they acquire a range of competencies including independence, problem-solving, coordination and social skills.

Sunshine Coast psychologist Dr Rhiannon Penny says play should form a major part of children’s life, and it helps them develop confidence and resilience. “Play also assists with children’s imagination, flexible thinking and abstract reasoning,” Dr Rhiannon says.

As parents we want to guide our children and we tend to ‘hover’ when they play, however, if the play is child-driven, they naturally engage in age-appropriate activities. Dr Rhiannon says supervision is important so children stay safe, but they also need personal space to play freely without adult intrusion, and parents need to step back and let their children take charge.

Playgroup Queensland’s Townsville regional coordinator Maria Grigg says it’s about finding a balance between letting children do things for themselves and being actively involved with extending their play.“Allow kids to discover for themselves and be themselves, and make mistakes and learn things the hard way and explore,” she says.

Maria says that in a quality playgroup, the play is still child-led but parents learn how to help their children build on their experiences. “It’s quite tricky to not take over and think that as a parent you know best,” she says.

There are 1,300 playgroups in Queensland, and Maria says the majority of the playgroups are parent-led and run by volunteers. Affiliated playgroups meet weekly and provide a safe and supportive environment for families with young children.

Young children are likely to remain engaged in free play when parents take the time to sit and play alongside their children, while being careful not to direct or control the play, explains Dr Rhiannon. “This concept of ‘floor time’, during which a parent will intentionally spend at least 10-20 minutes each day playing alongside their child in an activity of the child’s choice is great in providing the child with quality parent time and fostering the parent-child relationship,” Dr Rhiannon advises.

Spontaneous play gives children the opportunity to switch off and relax, without the pressure of structured extra-curricular activities. Children of all ages need time to engage in unstructured play, and Dr Rhiannon says children acquire many skills through free play, including creativity, the ability to interact with the world around them, social skills, conflict resolution, turn-taking, decision-making, self-expression and the ability to entertain themselves. “A large amount of free play time is important to the development of younger children’s social, cognitive, emotional, and physical well-being, while older children should also be afforded adequate downtime in their day where they are free to be kids,” Dr Rhiannon says.

The kind of play that children engage in depends on their age she explains. A baby’s play involves interaction with others and with simple objects, as they begin to develop gross and fine motor skills that enable more complex play. Until the age of two or three, children may engage in solitary play or parallel play where they play side-by-side with other children, or onlooker play where they observe other children’s activities. Associative play develops as children learn to engage with peers and interact with each other. By school-age, relationships with other children are the main focus, and they move into more structured cooperative play.

Types of Play

Encouraging different kinds of play helps children acquire a range of skills needed for healthy growth. Dr Rhiannon suggests having a dress-up box to encourage dramatic play, craft supplies to inspire creative play, and arranging play dates for social play.

Creative play

Activities like painting, craft activities and playing musical instruments help children express their individuality and activate their imagination Dr Rhiannon explains. “This self-expression also provides parents with the opportunity to learn about their child’s passions,” she says.

A basic craft kit for creative play can include crayons, glue, paint, cardboard, beads and buttons, however, simple natural resources like sand, shells, twigs or leaves will also inspire creative play.

Building a sandcastle or exploring rock pools at the beach are examples of active creative play that teach children problem-solving and resourcefulness. Dr Rhiannon says active creative play provides children with the benefits of physical exercise while also encouraging them to express themselves uniquely.

Dramatic play

Fantasy play allows children to imagine what may be possible, and children can extend their world and explore different experiences in a safe way as they become completely immersed in ‘pretend’ characters through dress-ups and role-play. “Dramatic and creative play allows children to develop their imagination and creativity, and is important for cognitive development,” Dr Rhiannon says. “Children engage their imagination through role-playing and fantasy play, and learn different avenues for self-expression.”

‘Pretend’ can start at around 12 months of age, when children engage in simple games that resemble real-life activities.

Physical play

Crawling, running, jumping and throwing a ball are all activities that help with coordination and balance, and are an essential part of gross motor skills development, while playing in a sandpit or garden will improve fine motor skills.“Physical play assists in developingfine and gross motor skills, strengthening muscles, and is important in healthy development,” Dr Rhiannon explains.

Children of all ages love to play outdoors, and Playgroup coordinator Maria says many of the Townsville region’s playgroups meet in parks or outdoor venues. The indigenous playgroup in Rassmussen, North Queensland, meets under a veranda and Maria says the garden is “very much part of the experience” for the local community. “It’s got beautiful shady trees and it’s got chooks and vegie gardens,” she says.

Exercise is important for healthy, happy young minds, as it releases certain chemicals in the brain that help children feel calm and relaxed. There are many non-competitive and fun ways to engage in physical activity, whether it’s jumping on a trampoline, throwing a Frisbee or crawling through a tunnel at the local playground.

Social play

Board games are great for developing social skills, as children engage positively with family and friends. Cooperative outdoor games are another fun way to learn important social skills and resilience. Dr Rhiannon explains playing with other children helps with social and emotional development, as children learn to interact with each other and make friends.“Playing with peers also allows children to learn how to work in groups, share, negotiate, cooperate, and resolve conflicts,” she says. “Many opportunities to develop these skills in childhood can lead to the child being able to function more effectively as an adult.”

Sensory play

Children explore colours, textures, shapes, sounds and smells through sensory play and activities can be as simple as making play dough shapes or beating a drum. “Sensory play is often associated with infancy and involves the engagement of different senses such as sound, movement, tactile, and visual experiences,” Dr Rhiannon says.

Technological play

Modern media and technology have removed the imaginative element from many of today’s play activities, and children often gravitate towards passive play options like the Xbox. Images and structures are provided, and children do not develop creative skills through this type of play, but they do learn other competencies. “Although passive play often requires little engagement of a child’s imagination and creative skills, it can offer benefits such as developing problem-solving, teaching strategy, and improving hand-eye coordination,” Dr Rhiannon says.

She warns, however, that parents need to monitor the time their children spend playing electronic games. “As a general rule of thumb, a healthy guide for parents is to operate on a 2:1 ratio, for example, for every minute spent on the computer, play station, or watching TV, two minutes should be spent outside or engaging in other imaginative play activities,” she says.

Finding the balance

Children may gravitate towards a specific type of play, for example, technological play, but they need to engage in all types of play, including physical and creative play, for their overall healthy development. Maria says play is the best way for children to learn, and having free time as well as structured activities is important. “Different children learn in different ways,” she says.

Parents can help by creating appealing alternatives for their children and by encouraging all kinds of play. “Through balancing structured, unstructured, and intentional family-relation activities, we set our children up for physical, social, emotional, and cognitive benefits,” Dr Rhiannon says.