How Open-Ended Play Can Benefit Your Child

How many times per day do you tell your children to “go play”? You’d probably be quite wealthy if you had a dollar for every time that was said! You may have wondered if instructing your child to go play when you’re busy is a bad thing – but the truth of the matter is that it’s really not. What you’re promoting for your child is something called “open-ended play”, and it’s a very good thing.

Open-ended play theory says that every child is a scientist, and that when they take an active role in learning through play, they’re actually performing little experiments all day long. They make observations about the world this way and interact with the things around them. This helps to a child to learn – and that’s always a good thing.

Read on for all you need to know about open-ended play and how you can encourage it through toys and activities in your child’s life.

Open-Ended Play: What Is It, Exactly?
What is open-ended play? When your child participates in open-ended play, they’re freely expressing their creativity. It is a type of play that creates endless possibilities for your child. There’s no right or wrong way to do something, no set of rules or instructions to follow, and no time limit. They can make their own choices during open-ended play and engage their imagination and creativity fully.

How Open-Ended Play Can Benefit Your Child
There are several ways that open-ended play can benefit your child and their development.

• It Plays A Vital Role In Early Childhood Development
A strong foundation in early childhood is crucial to every child’s future. If you want your kid to grow up to be a problem solver who makes confident decisions and then acts based on those decisions, open-ended play is a great way to encourage that.

It’s well understood in the world of child development that children develop their memory and imagination between the ages of three and seven. During this time, open-ended play is especially critical because it engages the part of a child’s brain that fosters those important skills related to memory and imagination, creating a foundation from which they can grow.

• It Helps Children Practice Decision-Making And Leadership
When your child participates in open-ended play, it’s their chance to be in the driver’s seat. They’re the leader in their own play when they’re not given instructions to follow and are left to create their own rules and scenarios. They are their own creative leader, and this playtime helps them to develop decision-making skills while they’re having fun – the best way to learn!

• It Allows Kids To Experiment
Experimenting with new ideas and learning new concepts are central to open-ended play. After all, there’s no wrong way for a child to engage in play this way, and since there are no instructions, they can do whatever they want without worrying if it’s being done the “right” way. They are also encouraged to try new things, since there’s no chance of mistakes happening.

Providing your child with the materials they need to accomplish open-ended play is all you need to do to encourage it – and these things are not hard to find.

Why Open-Ended Toys Are Better
So, how do you know if a toy is open-ended? It’s not too difficult to determine. Open-ended toys are those without a specific designated function. Because of this, a child can play with and manipulate these toys in a variety of ways.

It’s actually easier to give some idea of the types of toys that are not open-ended rather than a list of those that are open-ended (though we’ll do that too!). To put it simply, toys that are not open-ended generally do the playing for the child, and not the other way around. For example, toys with sounds and lights that a child sets off by pressing a button are not generally seen as open-ended toys. That doesn’t mean your child won’t get imaginative with them, but it’s something to be aware of when choosing toys that will encourage open-ended play.

An open-ended toy doesn’t have a specific function, which may make it seem a bit boring to start with, but these are toys that will eventually be played with over and over again. A child comes back to play with an open-ended toy because there are so many things that can be done with it. An example of open-ended play is when your child asks to play with the cardboard box a new appliance came in. It’s just a box – but the possibilities of what can be done with that box are endless.

What Are Examples Of Open-Ended Toys?
So, what are the types of toys your child will go back to again and again? One common example is a set of blocks. You may think blocks are too simple or boring to entertain your child for long – after all, they’re just shapes made out of plastic or wood. But what a child can do with those shapes is endless. Plus, open-ended toys can be used for years at many different stages. A two-year-old is just as likely to play with blocks and be engaged as a six-year-old, and they’ll get more creative with their play as time goes on.

Other examples of open-ended toys include:

  • Legos – Just like blocks, Legos can be used in many different ways over and over again. They may come in packaged sets, but that doesn’t mean they have to be used as they come advertised – a true open-ended toy!
  • Playsets – Playsets like a play kitchen, workbench, or even store are very popular with kids, and they’re great open-ended toys. They allow a child to practice behavior, roles, and scenarios that they’re seeing and learning about in the real world around them, so these are great open-ended toys.
  • Stuffed animals and dolls – Stuffed animals and dolls are great for imaginative play. After all, they can be anything a child wants them to be, and the possibilities for games and entertainments stretch as wide as a child’s imagination.

Open-ended play is crucial for children, so make sure you’re promoting it – even if that means telling your child to “go play” when you’re busy!

Featured image by La-Rel Easter on Unsplash