Tips to Improve Healthy Playtime in Children
It’s a fact that all children enjoy playtime, whether it’s playing pretend, solving puzzles, or interacting with toys. Playtime is a good way for kids to exert energy and allows socialization, problem-solving, and creativity. However, it plays a more critical role in their lives than one would think.
Kids get a healthy concoction of physical and cognitive development through hands-on interaction and communication. So, here are a couple of healthy playtime improvement tips for developing children.
Get Them Moving Around
When your kids move around, it reduces their chances of developing childhood obesity and other health diseases such as diabetes. Because of the increased screen time, children have become more sedentary with their playtime.
So, an excellent way to improve healthy playtime in children is by getting them to move around and explore. Playing outside with yard toys, running a quick obstacle course, and doing a fun scavenger hunt will help get their bodies moving and increase interaction.
Encourage Socialization
One of the reasons parents should encourage children’s playtime is to develop their social skills. They learn two types of socialization: primary and secondary.
While primary socialization helps them learn norms, values, and communication through immediate family, secondary socialization teaches children about appropriate behavior outside their home. Through socialization, they learn to create bonds and communicate.
Cater to Their Age
Each child is different in their development level, especially with playtime. So, ensure that you understand age-specific playtime activities that won’t overwhelm or bore them. From birth to six months of age, teaching your child to smile, showing them brightly colored objects, imitating their noises, and laying them in various positions can help them see the world differently.
From 7 to 12 months, you can play peek-a-boo using a mirror and monitor their exploration. From one to three years of age, teaching them to explore bodily movements and encouraging reading, social playtime, and singing are fun ways for them to develop. Lastly, ages four to six can partake in developing their imagination, dancing, active movements, and limited screen times.
Help Develop Their Imagination
While playtime can revolve around playing games and interacting with toys, you can help them play pretend. It is a great way to get their creativity flowing and builds a foundation for a healthy parent-child relationship.
Playing with your children can help grow family bonds and let’s you be a part of their world. So, playing pretend cooking, mermaids, medieval knights, or magical creatures can bring you closer together.
Playtime is an essential part of a child’s development. Not only does it teach them how to behave and interact with other children, but it also helps them decompress and enjoy themselves.
Photo – Bruna Saito
