Between structured activities at your child’s daycare center to organized family routines, your child may not be enjoying enough unstructured time to play. It may not seem like it but children can benefit greatly from unstructured, child-initiated activity. This allows them to express themselves and use their imagination.
As a trusted provider of child care in Maryland, we will discuss how young children can benefit from unstructured playtime:
- Develop emotional and socialization skills.
Free play encourages children to achieve their developmental milestones and this includes learning how to regulate their emotions. Free play with other children will develop their socialization skills and ability to resolve conflicts on their own. This also teaches them how to lead and how to work as part of a team. - Foster cognitive growth.
Unstructured play is essential to healthy brain development from a young age. Through free play that is not bound by activities or schedules directed by adults, children can develop their brains in positive ways. This strengthens the prefrontal cortex of the brain which influences the way children learn, solve problems, and gain knowledge from their environment. - Encourage greater independence.
Free play is also an excellent way to encourage independence and emotional resiliency from a young age. By allowing children some time to engage in unstructured play, they develop a stronger sense of independence and become more comfortable with tackling tasks on their own.
A To Z Fun Care Preschool & Child Care Center is an established preschool in Potomac, Maryland. We offer several child care programs for different age groups to provide young learners the best education possible. Set the foundation for learning with our programs – enroll your child online or contact us for questions or concerns.