Making Play Time Even More Engaging

One of my favorite things to do with my kids is to play with them. From building with blocks to going to the park, it’s so fun to help them discover and enjoy new things. As a dad, I love to have a plan for what we’re going to do. I’ve found that it’s helpful for me and my kids to be specific with what our plan is. When it’s time to get some exercise, rather than say “let’s go on a walk,” I’ll say “let’s go on a walk to the playground” or “let’s ride our bikes to the duck pond and back.” This way, we have a destination, making our efforts more focused.

Our walks and bike rides are in themselves a form of play — we point out interesting things along our route, and we talk and joke around — and our final destinations offer another opportunity to engage, whether it be going down the slide or feeding the ducks.

When we are playing inside the house, I love using blocks. Jenga blocks are my favorite because they are simple, identical, and large enough that they’re not a choking hazard. I can endlessly build towers with my girls, and they get a kick out of knocking them down.

This is one of the most popular activities for my family right now: Olivia and I will build a big tower together, and then Caroline, who just started walking, will come in and gleefully destroy the tower (she’s not content until every last block has hit the floor).

I also like to vary our activities to keep things fresh and exciting. Sometimes, play time means building a castle with Lego Duplos. On other days, we’ll have a tea party. My kids also love roughhousing, which is lots of fun as long as we keep it safe. When they’re old enough, hide and seek is great too. Make-believe and role playing is also great fun, and it’s great for child development.

This piece was originally posted at VersaMe.com. VersaMe created the Starling the world’s first wearable engagement tracker that helps encourage and reinforce positive parenting behaviors.