Let them be messy, it’s better than to be stressy…
4 mind-blowing benefits of outdoor play.
The world is changing and so are the needs of its little habitants. There was a period when there was a lot of open space and free play for the children. They used to get outside of the house with all of their curiosity to explore their surroundings.
They were used to busy in planting the remaining seeds of their fruits of lemon, orange, mango and many others.
They were busy fishing in nearby pond.
They used to watch parents working in garage or workshop at the backyard.
They were keen to learn through experiment.
They used to gather around their grandmothers or grandfathers to listen to the old fascinating stories.
They were actively participating in pottery, farming, painting, engineering and herbal medication.
But then the world started to change and eventually its needs also started to change. The collective families shrink into nuclear one because of changing professional requirements.
Children were forced to live in apartments and admitted to schools at very early stage of their life.
Then, humans found the interventions to cope with children needs and started day cares and many other sources to fulfill the children demands.
Time passed by and COVID stuck the whole world, opening new realms of learning for children and elders as well. Education was digitalized. Everything was on humans finger tips now.
Children’s material learning transformed into digital learning. Humans adopt it too because that was the demand to excel in the world. Now children learn through gadgets in a two dimensional way.
IS ThIS ENOUGH?
No, this is not enough we can’t solely rely on traditional or digital methods of learning for children. We have to maintain a balance. Technology is for us we are not for technology. We’ve to master it without keeping our physical, emotional and social health at stake and so is true with our children. We’ve to bring them up facing all these challenges along with the skills to maintain their health and well-being. And we’ve to do this from a very early age.
We’ve to take care of their developmental needs at a very early stage. A Child is growing rapidly during his early stage regarding his
Communication and speech
Physical ability
Social and emotional domain
Cognition
All of these areas of development, interlink at every stage — children can’t progress in one area without progressing in another.
But unfortunately, we’re not giving enough consideration to these developmental needs, neither as parents nor as teachers. I’ve spent 10 years among the students of kindergarten and found our institutes lack an understanding of the physical needs of children during their early years.
Moreover, parents also do not support children’ outside play expressing their considerations about injuring or messing in the dirt. We’ve to realize the fact that our younger children need more outdoor play now than ever.
This is the time when the foundations for learning, health and behaviours of life are laid down.
Play is fun for our child. It provides our child with opportunities to explore, observe, experiment and solve problems. Our child will need our support and encouragement to do this. Exploring the world is a big part of our child’s learning.
To inculcate the life skills among our children like communicating, thinking, solving problems, moving and being with other people and children. We need Good “old-fashioned” outdoor play. It is essential for healthy development, especially in children’s early years. When we send our children outside and allow them to play actively we are giving them valuable experiences that can directly impact their physical development, social skills, creativity, and even their intelligence.
Lets have a view how outdoor exposure have tremendous effect on their physical health communication, cognition, emotions and intellect.
Physical health:
When our children are free to Run, skip, jump and climb they are allowing their bodies to grow stronger muscles, and build up their endurance. Establishing a positive relationship with physical activity in a child’s early years help them to maintain a healthy lifestyle in adulthood.
Moreover outdoor natural activities help our children develop essential motor skills like coordination, agility, balance, and dexterity. They are constantly developing new skills.
Emotional Development:
Playing outside, our children face many challenges and problems to solve. They are exploring their surroundings and absorbing information. They examine their abilities and use their full potential to overcome an obstacle. They build self awareness and resilience. They gain self confidence. Isn’t it thrilling to watching them coping and moving forward independently?
Spending more time outside playing can also have many positive effects on young children’s emotional development and build their confidence.
Cognitive development:
Encouraging outside play allows little learners to experience new things that will benefit their intellectual development and boost their creativity. They naturally engage all five of their senses while playing outside, which strengthens their ability to process sensory stimulation.They invent their own games. They have pretend play that is boosting their intellectual and communication capabilities.
Relationship Building:
Public outdoor spaces introduce our little ones to new friends who are sometimes different from them. This gives them a first-hand experience of enduring differences among themselves and others and ultimately prepares them for their upcoming life. They learn to collaborate with others. They learn to communicate their differences with each other.
To sum up, our children need our real concerns about their health and growth and being parents we also want them to flourish and nourish in the right way. This is only possible by maintaining a balance in their lives.
