Can Play Save The World?

Followers of this blog and the work of playmeo will know that we have a fervent belief that play is an essential element in the healthy development of human beings.

More and more research is being conducted into this growing area of science, and the results are nothing short of stunning and exciting.

Study after study now supports and elevates the importance of play especially in the development of critical language, focus, communication, problem-solving and self-control skills of young people. In the words of experts such as Dr Stuart Brown, the President of the National Institute for Play, play is as critical to the development of a human being as sleep and nutrition.

Yet, in a world that still (mostly) believes that children learn best when they are sitting still and quiet, play is often admonished for being childish, wasteful or unproductive.

In her article Can Play Save The World which appeared first in the Quartz online journal, Jenny Anderson explores the benefits of letting children play. She asserts that letting children play is one of the most powerful ways to prepare children for school. Indeed, she bases a great deal of her article exploring a flourishing experiment called ‘Play Labs’ in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Click here to read her full article Can Play Save The World.

You may also wish to explore more about the science of play and the growing number of studies which support the integration of some of the most powerful ways to learn, by clicking here.

Contributor Mark