Play-Based Learning: What It Is and Its Relevance To Your Child’s Early Development

As adults, we can never really shrug off the impact of our early childhood on our growth over the years.

According to a research study by Harvard center on the developing child, positive early childhood experiences often translate to longer life expectancy and improved ability to cope with stress.

All of this boils down to a single fact – the gross importance of early childhood experiences for kids. Here’s where play-based learning comes into the picture.

Play-Based Learning and How It Works

Just like the name suggests, play-based learning simply means learning by playing. This might be a bit counterintuitive and contractionary, as you might begin to ask, how can my child learn by playing?

It is actually very simple. Playing and learning are not mutually exclusive as you might perceive them to be.

By nature’s design, children are wired to do exactly what is necessary to facilitate growth and learning. Play-based learning is designed with no end goal or purpose.

It typically features elements like:

  • Voluntary. What your child will do, how she’ll do it, and for how long she’ll do it is totally up to her. One of the most underlying elements of play-based learning is your child’s choice.
  • Enjoyable. This point is quite apparent as a child’s delight is usually obvious while playing. Play-based learning highlights excitement and thrill for your child as she explores independently.
  • Unorganized. There are no rules of engagement in play-based learning. Your child has all the time in the world to explore innate interests without any external influence or any previously designed plan and structure.
  • Process-centric. This is the flagship highlight of play-based learning. There is no purpose nor is there a learning goal. The activity process is what matters, not what the activity will do.
  • Imaginative. Play in its raw form embodies make-believe. Imagination is a highly engaging element of play-based learning.

All of these elements in play-based learning combine to holistically develop your child by tapping into the child’s natural curiosity to explore her innate talent.

Relevance of Play-Based Learning

Studies and research have definitively shown that play significantly facilitates your child’s:

  • Socio-emotional development. Play helps children develop socially and emotionally as they leverage its imaginative and explorative elements to understand themselves better and learn interpersonal interactions.
  • Cognitive development. When your child learns by playing, their ability to utilize their innate intelligence to process information uniquely is comprehensively boosted.
  • Physical development. Play-centric early development ensures that a child’s motor skills are holistically developed. By playing, your child learns how to use their body in the right way. Healthy exercise and muscle growth/coordination is also guaranteed when your child plays.

Play-based learning essentially prepares your child for kindergarten education. You can visit a daycare hurstville to explore how play-based works in real life extensively.