It is impressive how today’s children are “punished” by taking away hours of play to do homework. Even the parents themselves do not feel comfortable letting their children play all the time, since they are aware that they have pending tasks and prefer, in most cases, to see them with their notebook and attentive to each of the things they have for do before going back to school.
This way of continuing to send homework is in contradiction with all those times when we comment that play is also a very important part of learning , as it can teach children many things. But then, is it entirely true that we know what the learning benefits that play brings? To clear up any doubts, we have wanted to address this issue in today’s article, to know in depth whether or not it is true that we have total knowledge about that learning that games transmit to the little ones.
Learn about the advantages that games have on the education and development of children and the successful programs that are already being implemented in many schools around them.
Is it true that children learn by playing?
There is a type of learning that cannot be achieved in books and notebooks, it is about learning to relate to others and to the environment. Many adults who have been brilliant in their careers find limitations in their own way of managing emotions and, when interacting, feel that they are failing and that they have not learned, perhaps, everything they should to achieve it.
In this sense, childhood games teach children to socialize with their peers , to decrease the marked egocentricity that usually occurs in children, it also stimulates social skills and even helps intrapersonal development or, in other words, to know themselves. Play, therefore, is a way of knowing and respecting social norms and allows adults to understand the world of their children and also that of their students.
School success programs where the game is the protagonist
Some schools in different countries have incorporated a pedagogical program of “child dramatization” at the preschool level in which children have different areas to develop drama games. They have costumes, toy kitchens, vehicles, a sports area for each child to play the character they want best … Through these toys some children choose to be chefs, Formula 1 pilots, parents and mothers, etc. In turn, this type of game also gives teachers the opportunity to see the world of children from their own point of view , which provides a lot of information for other tasks and school subjects.
For the most part, children choose the characters of their parents, but there are also those who choose the characters of their favorite shows or what gives them interest within their environment. In this way, and through role experimentation , we see that play is a way to develop intrapersonal intelligence and also to observe if the child is exposed to inappropriate models.
Another very popular program is the “successful transitions” program, in which pedagogical actions are implemented to make the transition from one school to another or from home to school, in a less traumatic way for children. The benefit in these cases is to have safer children who enjoy their classes, more willing to learn and with less truancy.
The benefits of games suggest that traditional homework may be “robbing” children of precious time they could spend socializing and experimenting through play. Perhaps it is not so much about eliminating the so-called homework completely, but about combining it better with other types of activities or, at least, trying to make sure that having to do exercises on a notebook is not something that has to be done daily. Let’s not forget that one of the main obligations of children should be to play , and not only for the simple fact of having fun, but for the amount of things that something as beautiful as play can bring in childhood.
So, is the game really worth more than the notebooks full of sheets and sheets to be filled or not? Do you know or work in a school that is already applying these game disciplines and replacing the burden of traditional homework?
We await your answers!
