Play and Learn

When children play they are learning valuable skills that include social, cognitive and physical development.  When children play they are continually learning.  Play based learning comes about as a result of a child’s curiosity and exploration and is often based on their interests and making sense of the world around them.  

"Every child has the right to rest and leisure, to engage in play and recreational activities appropriate to the age of the child and to participate freely in cultural life and the arts”

Article 31, United Nations Convention on the rights of the Child (UNRC)

The International Play Association regards play as:

• PLAY, along with the basic needs of nutrition, health, shelter and education, is vital to develop the potential of all children.
• PLAY is communication and expression, combining thought and action; it gives satisfaction and a feeling of achievement.
• PLAY is instinctive, voluntary, and spontaneous.
• PLAY helps children develop physically, mentally, emotionally and socially.
• PLAY is a means of learning to live, not a mere passing of time.

(IPA, 2020, http://ipaworld.org/childs-right-to-play/the-childs-right-to-play/)