As we understand play is important for the social, cognitive emotional and physical wellbeing of children and begins at early childhood so now the question that rises in one’s mind is does play help in cognitive development? Research have shown that play is a natural tool that helps children learn how to cooperate ,negotiate overcome challenges and develop resilience with others .It also helps children bond with their peers help build creativity and imaginative skills while developing physical ,cognitive and emotional strengths . Children engage themselves and interact with the world around through play which is a complex behaviour and an important aspect of child development therefore studying play is crucial to understanding the developmental …show more content…
When we try to understand how adults view play it is always considered a waste of time as we don’t consider it being important. Educationalist A.S. Neil who founded the residential school Summerhill recognised the importance of play for a child’s development he believed that play especially “fantasy play” was of importance for a child’s social, intellectual and moral development similarly Pete Smiths work on play ethos gained importance in the early 20th century. Many Developmental psychologist agree that play is important in child’s development especially in the early years but the view that play is important is controversial because many teachers and parents are uncomfortable with the idea of having play in the school curriculum. Most of the research on play focusses on its role in cognitive development and also understand if play is important for social development, peer interactions and socialization. One of the earliest studies by Mildred Parten in 1932 in the US on young children showed that there was a developmental sequence to children’s behaviour though the categories define different levels of participation in play it does not give an overview of what children do when they are playing or what these experiences mean