Outdoor playtime, which seems to be steadily disappearing, needs to be restored to children's lives. Besides the main concern about childhood obesity, it is important to emphasise to parents that reductions in playtime might negatively impact children in other ways, such as limiting their ability to be creative, learning to get along with other children, problem solving and further learning. Researchers from the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, USA, have found that nowadays, instead of running around in the park with peers, children spend their free time watching television, playing video games or participating in other passive, sedentary activities. The study ahs shown that most parents and teachers believe that children who are physically active learn better and are better behaved than their peers. Further, experiments with rats and mice show that those exposed to an enriched environment have improved learning and memory. The same may be true among children who often engage in problem solving and creative thinking during outdoor play. Children's affiliation with others during free play cultivates their social skills, such as in deciding what to play and whom to play with. Also, such unstructured playtime is likely to improve their emotional wellbeing, as it may reduce anxiety, depression, aggression and sleep problems. Parents may also benefit by joining their children in play. As they increase their own levels of physical activity, they may also experience positive mood changes. Efforts to increase free playtime among children must extend beyond parents, however, since many children spend significant amounts of time in preschools or some other type of daycare. Such facilities are ideal venues to incorporate guidelines for unstructured playtime.
Archives of Pediatric & Adolescent Medicine,
January 2005