London - Next time you reach for the Play-Doh and start making models with your toddler, think again. You may be doing more harm than good by getting too involved.
Parents who try to boost their children’s development by regularly taking the lead with structured activities are in danger of actually stifling it, an expert warned.
Letting youngsters play alone helps them develop crucial skills which are linked to higher academic achievement and well-being, according Dr David Whitebread.
The Cambridge University academic said opportunities for children to play on their own are steadily declining, with youngsters nowadays leading more structured lives than generations before them.
He was responding to a survey which found parents feel strong pressure to play with their children on a one-to-one basis and engage them in structured activities.
Sixty-three percent thought one-to-one play would help their children develop new skills more quickly and 66 percent worried they didn’t play with their offspring enough.
But Dr Whitebread, senior lecturer in psychology and education, warned that denying children time to explore alone could harm their development.
“The really big concern over the last decade is the relative loss of opportunities for children to engage in child-led play,” he said. “Children’s lives are much more structured than they have ever been – and there is quite a lot of evidence to suggest this can be detrimental. Parents can certainly be given guidelines about productive ways of playing with their children, but it’s important that play is not structured all the time.”
The survey of 1 100 parents with children aged from birth to three found 73 percent felt pressure to ensure their child develops at a certain pace. Eighty percent felt the need to fill their child’s time with new activities to ensure they are always entertained.
On average, children in the survey, commissioned by parenting website MadeForMums in association with Fisher Price, spent 5.4 hours a day playing – 2.3 hours directly with their parents and 1.9 independently.
Dr Whitebread urged parents to give children a range of experiences, both on their own, with peers and with parents.
“Research shows development of ‘self-regulation abilities’ – which are predictive of academic achievement and emotional wellbeing in children – has a very strong link to the amount of time spent in child-led play,” he said. “Careful observation has shown that children often have a purpose in their play when left alone – it is not just mucking about.”
Susie Boone, editorial director of MadeForMums, said: “Parents are constantly searching for the perfect balance of giving children the best educational start in life, while letting them play and learn in their own way. It’s often a difficult balance to achieve.” - Daily Mail