What is mindful play?
During childhood, children are constantly learning and developing. While school and family are large contributors to this development, another integral part is playing. An article by the American Academy of Pediatrics states:
“Play is essential to development because it contributes to the cognitive, physical, social, and emotional well-being of children and youth.''
From play, children learn to solve problems, follow rules, exercise, make friends, and have fun. However, over the past fifty years, children playing with others has declined while depression, anxiety, and suicide has increased.
The loss of play in children's lives negatively impacts them. Therefore, children should be encouraged to play because it is essential to their development and overall well being.
Types of Play
Children play in different ways. Some prefer to play with friends, while others choose to play with bricks or dolls. Since play is essential to a child’s development, it is important to understand the different types of play and their benefits.
1. Social Play
Social play is playful interactions between a child and their friends or parents. This often occurs between the ages of 2 to 6 and helps develop social skills. These include group interactions such as tag, cards, or board games.
2. Object Play
Object play is the use of objects such as cars, blocks, and dolls in a playful manner. It helps develop independent and creative thought. Additional play that falls under this category includes toys, art, books, and crafts. Screens are also apart of object play, which can have a positive and negative impact on a child’s development.
3. Language Play
Language play is when a child talks to themselves before sleep or upon waking up. Playful repetition of certain words or sounds helps develop language skills. This is common among 1 to 2 year olds.
4. Pretend Play
Pretend play is when a child pretends an object or action is something different from what it really is. This can mean pretending to fly or that a banana is a phone. It develops the skill to form complicated story lines and understand the intent of others.
A big part of pretend play is using imagination. By using their imagination, children create a safe inner world of their own where they can explore and be themselves. One common way children do this is through superhero play. Becoming a superhero allows children to feel empowered, free from mistakes, and experiment with the type of person they want to become.
What is mindful play?
Regardless of the type of play a child engages in, children create a safe space where they can explore, learn, and grow. As parents, we can support their play by providing safe environments and by engaging in mindful play with them.
Mindful play is when children are focused and fully in the moment during activities. From this, they learn control, emotion regulation, interpersonal skills, and build confidence and resilience.
By participating in mindful play with our children, we can focus fully on them and enjoy the time together. One way to engage in mindful play is by stepping back and allowing your child to lead what happens.
While it is sometimes difficult to slow down and allow our children to lead our play, making the effort to be mindful together creates a new safe space for everyone to learn, explore, and enjoy.
4 Ways to Practice Mindful Play
Here are some additional ways to practice mindful play in your family:
Be attentive and engaged when playing with your child.
Encourage different types of play (creative, imaginative, social, etc.)
Provide children with unstructured free time without screens
Practice mindfulness with your children. Using GLY together is a fun and engaging way you can make mindfulness a family activity.
References
Ahmed, Namarig. “Supporting the Wellbeing of Inner-City Middle-School Students through Mindful and Creative Reflective Activities.” Taylor & Francis, 5 June 2018, www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14623943.2018.1479691.
Bauer, Karen L., and Ernest Dettore. “Superhero Play: What's a Teacher to Do?” SpringerLink, Kluwer Academic Publishers-Plenum Publishers, link.springer.com/article/10.1023/A:1025677730004.
Burdette, Hillary L. “Resurrecting Free Play in Young Children.” Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, American Medical Association, 1 Jan. 2005, jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapediatrics/article-abstract/485902.
Ginsburg, Kenneth R. “The Importance of Play in Promoting Healthy Child Development and Maintaining Strong Parent-Child Bonds.” Pediatrics, American Academy of Pediatrics, 1 Jan. 2007, pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/119/1/182.short.
Gray, Peter. “The Decline of Play and the Rise of Psychopathology in Children and Adolescents.” American Journal of Play, The Strong. One Manhattan Square, Rochester, NY 14607. Tel: 585-263-2700; e-Mail: Info@Thestrong.org; Web Site: Http://Www.thestrong.org, 30 Nov. 2010, eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ985541.
Vygotsky, L S. “Imagination and Creativity in Childhood.” Taylor & Francis, 19 Dec. 2014, www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.2753/RPO1061-0405280184.
