Free play: how it is essential for your child’s learning and development

Playing isn't just about having fun, it can be a learning process too. Through free play, children are able to learn, explore and make sense of the world around them.

Unstructured play or free play has a plethora of benefits for early childhood development by being a building block for your child's cognitive, social, physical, and emotional development.

But what exactly does the term ‘free play’ mean, and how does it help your child's growth and development?

What is free play?

Simply put, free play is child-led play. It's where children choose what they want to do, how and where they want to do it without any predetermined rules or guidelines.

Adults can be involved but don't play the main role, meaning, parents can support and play along, but in free play, children are not directed or asked to follow any rules made by the parents, rather they explore their world using their imagination and creativity.

On the other hand, structured play, unlike free play, is any play that has a parent or a teacher providing instructions, and a specific task so that the child learns a new skill. The activities in structured play consist of a set of rules that children need to follow in order to play the game, like board games, puzzles, organized sports games, or sorting games.

But in free play, children are at liberty to play any game, create new games, and play it any way they want, like deciding to play dress-up, mimic adult roles they have observed, or painting, exploring their surroundings, playing with their toys, or even playing in the park. During free play, children learn to express themselves and communicate in their own unique way.

How does free play aid in learning and development?

The act of playing helps acquire skills, take risks, and learn from their mistakes, more specifically, it: 

Fosters cognitive development

When your child plays with others or on their own, it develops cognitive skills like concentration, problem-solving, critical thinking, memory, and learning.

Their brain continues to develop positively when they have the opportunity and liberty to play any game they wish, and this leads to stimulation of their imagination, resilience, thinking skills, expressiveness, and individuality during free play.

With free play, their brain can better grasp and understand concepts like colors, measurements, shapes, letter recognition, and counting.

Improves language skills

From birth, children build literacy and language skills through interactions and play. Babies and toddlers are influenced by their caregivers into learning new words each time the caregiver describes what they see, hear, or do.

Studies suggest that play is an effective tool for language development in children, and helps them to enhance their listening and speaking skills. It allows children to practice their vocabulary when they speak and helps them understand others. It helps them learn that symbols, letters, signs, numerals, and words have a purpose and a meaning of their own.

You might have sometimes noticed that while playing with other children, they might often mimic each other's words and actions to reach agreements, thereby discovering new words and their meanings.
 

Boosts physical growth

Free play is a great source to develop children's physical strength, stamina, hand-eye coordination, and gross motor skills, and improve their balance.

Physical play is also a great form of exercise for young children, promoting health and fitness - like increasing their cardiovascular function and building strong muscles.

Play encourages them to move around and understand the concept of spatial relations which also helps them to have better reflexes -for instance, taking a sudden turn while running if there’s an obstacle in their path, but these reflexes are developed at a different pace in each child.

Also, when your child throws a ball and learns to catch it, they have now grasped spatial relationships while improving their fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination. 

This becomes possible because with the development of spatial reasoning, they have now understood the distance between the ball and their body, and the time it’ll take for the ball to reach them while also being able to direct their hands into catching the ball, and thus improving their coordination.

Encourages social and emotional development

Research suggests that free play has a vital role in children’s emotional growth by helping them maintain an emotional balance, develop empathic abilities, regulate their emotions, build self-confidence and esteem, develop self-control, and develop their ability to resolve a conflict.

Free play also encourages your child to use their imagination and create make-believe games, and this is where the symbolic play or pretend play becomes an essential part of free play.

For instance, a stick, a bowl, and a few blocks can become a spoon, a pot, and delicious ingredients of their favorite dish. Before symbolic play, a block is just a block, and after, a block can be a car, a telephone, a star, or anything your child wishes it to be.

Through free play, your child will have a better understanding of how stories work - their characters, plot, and structure. Your child might pretend-play by being a princess and having a little high-tea with their imaginative friends. Playing dress-up or role-playing can develop children's positive social and emotional skills and values. 

They may make their own rules and learn to adapt or tweak them as needed. Doing this can help them navigate life, face challenges, and build relationships with others.

Your child’s ability to act out adult situations like going to the supermarket, taking their animal to the vet, acting like a school teacher helps them learn how to interact with others, and express their feelings.
 

Free play encourages independence in children

From a tender age, children are constantly told what to do and what not to do. Parents decide everything for their kids, from choosing what to wear, what to eat, and when to sleep.

But during free play, children have a choice to make their own rules and mark their sanctuary. So, when children start making up new games and their rules or change the whole game or characters in it, even when adults are invited to play – it helps develop leadership skills and boost self-confidence.

Another advantage of letting children lead, they develop the capability of tackling small tasks that come their way and in a sense, figuring out how they fit into this large, confusing world.

With independent play, children will explore their interests, desires, and skills, which will help them know themselves better and help them set their goals and ambitions in days to come.

Takeaway

Free play is one of the simple joys of childhood, and for that reason, it should always be encouraged. The positive effects of free play are far-reaching, influencing and impacting every element of your child’s physical, emotional, and mental development.

So, the next time your child tells you they're bored, avoid giving them instructions or ideas about what they can do. Instead, encourage them to come up with creative ways to entertain themselves because that is how free play starts.

At byjuslearning.com, we provide curriculum-aligned, grade-level learning experiences for kids between ages 4 to 8, helping them build on skills they learn in school. 

Disclaimer: The information provided on this site is NOT medical advice and is for informational purposes only. It is not intended to diagnose, provide medical or behavioral advice, treat, prevent, or cure any disease, condition, or behavior. You should consult with a qualified healthcare professional regarding your child’s development to make a medical diagnosis, determine a treatment for a medical condition, or obtain other related advice.