Play

Play is an intrinsically motivated, imaginative, self-chosen activity constructed to meet a person’s desires and needs (Gray, 2013). Play is often seen as something children do for leisure, but it is a crucial part of their development across the cognitive, social, and physical domains. Play is how children explore their world, learning new information, developing social skills, and practicing motor movements (Ginsburg et al., 2007). Through play, children learn effective communication, self-regulation, conflict resolution, problem-solving, and cooperation with others (Ginsburg et al., 2007). Furthermore, they learn about themselves by exploring roles, interests, and relationships. Maria Montessori and Jean Piaget are credited with the idea that play is children’s work (Pittsburgh, n. d.).

Types of Play

According to constructivist psychologists like Piaget and Smilanksy children engage in types of play that reflect their level of cognitive development (Ahmed et al., 2016; Smilansky & Shefatya, 1990). There are four distinct types: functional play, constructive play, symbolic play, and games with rules (Günal & Tufan, 2019). Each type of play emerges at different ages and stages of cognitive development. (Ivrendi, 2017). Children can use multiple types of play at once after they have reached a new stage.

Functional Play

Beginning in infancy, children learn that they have control of their bodies and objects. Functional play, also called practice play, starts at birth and continues throughout childhood (Smilansky & Shefatya, 1990). Through this type of play, children practice motor movements and interact with their environment through repeated actions (Günal & Tufan, 2019; Smilansky & Shefatya, 1990). It might look like an infant shaking a rattle, splashing in the bath, or repeatedly dropping toys from their high chair. As children get older and more active, functional play includes gross motor movements, like climbing and jumping, and fine motor movements, such as grasping small objects.

Constructive Play

Around two years old, children progress from simple, repetitive functional play to goal-directed, creative activities (Günal & Tufan, 2019). When children manipulate objects to create or learn something, they are engaging in constructive play (Smilansky & Shefatya, 1990). Adults can encourage constructive play by providing materials for the child to interact with, such as blocks, paint, clay, legos, sand, and water.

Constructive play facilitates the development of imagination, curiosity, problem-solving skills, and fine motor skills (Günal & Tufan, 2019). This type of play prepares children for later academic success and flexible thinking (Lockman & Tamis-LeMonda, 2021; Suleiman & Abdulkareem, 2023). For example, building with blocks helps children learn spatial relationships (Suh et al., 2019). Creative activities also encourage the development of positive self-esteem in children (Mak & Fancourt, 2019). Children can use constructive play to support symbolic play by creating props for their stories or building sets (Park, 2019).

Symbolic Play

At around two years of age, children also begin to use symbolic play, or pretend play. This is when children use objects, actions, or ideas to represent other objects, actions, or ideas (Günal & Tufan, 2019; Park, 2019). These activities may include role-playing, such as pretending to be a firefighter or monster, and make-believe actions, like using a banana as a phone (Smilansky & Shefatya, 1990). Symbolic play allows children to explore various roles and participate in activities that they may not otherwise do in the real world (Günal & Tufan, 2019; Park, 2019).

It encourages the development of social skills, academic abilities, early literacy concepts, and behavioral self-regulation (Leong & Bodrova 2015). Children who do not engage in this kind of play display cognitive and emotional delays, especially if they are underprivileged (Smilansky & Shefatya, 1990). Adults should encourage symbolic play by initiating role-play, make-believe scenarios, and verbal communication of pretend actions (Frost, 1998; Smilansky & Shefatya, 1990).

With experience and time, role-plays become more sophisticated, and socialization becomes an important aspect of play activities (Günal & Tufan, 2019; Smilansky & Shefatya, 1990). Children will assign roles to themselves and others, and their interactions generally involve sequenced steps to carry out a specific fantasy (Smilansky & Shefatya, 1990). Through symbolic play, children learn skills in negotiation, listening, sharing, taking turns, and respecting others.

Children’s symbolic play progresses through different stages as they develop their cognitive skills (Frost, 1998). They usually begin by using realistic objects with themselves, like pretending to eat toy food. They then adopt roles related to those objects, such as becoming a chef who makes the toy food. Over time, they create elaborate plots surrounding different roles and realistic and unrealistic objects. The child may think they are a chef making food (glued together pipe cleaners and stickers) in space for alien customers (their friends or stuffed animals).