Free to Play!

After writing that post on play, last week, I was reminded of a series I had written almost 3 years ago on open-ended play.  Since that blog no longer exists, I thought I would take some time to repost it here.  It is a ten part series that unpacks exactly what open-ended play is, the benefits and how to cultivate this kind of critical play in our children’s lives.  Play is so essential to a child’s development and will be a primary topic in one of our upcoming talks at the Arizona Homeschool Convention!

So enjoy!

Have you ever peeked in on your child when he or she is totally engrossed in their own little world? It is truly a beautiful thing to behold. Not only are they having fun, but child’s play is actually serious work.

In our fast-paced culture, we seem to be “scheduling” everything. Our kids go from one activity to the next with nary a break in-between. But research has shown that slowing the pace down and giving children the chance to explore is not only more engaging, but critical for optimum development. Children need the freedom to invent and discover. It is so important that we provide play-time where there are no expectations, no specific problems to solve, no rules to follow and no pressure to produce a finished product. Open-ended play helps children build knowledge, skills and creativity at their own pace! It fosters critical thinking instead of merely imitating. In the long-run, instead of merely programming our children to repeat rote facts, our goal should be to raise children who can think for themselves and exhibit creativity. We can begin building the foundation for this now by letting them play!

I’ll expand more on this next time…