Canadian Council on Learning | Conseil Canadien sur l'Apprentissage

Children need more time for unstructured play

Free play time crucial to children’s development

Nov. 8, 2006 Ottawa—Growing numbers of young Canadian children are so involved in organized lessons and structured sports that they are missing out on the benefits of unstructured, spontaneous free play, says a new report by the Canadian Council on Learning that examines the importance of play for children under the age of nine.

“Play nourishes every aspect of a child’s growth. In fact, it is the foundation of the intellectual, social, physical and emotional skills necessary for success in school and in life,” says Paul Cappon, president and CEO of the Canadian Council on Learning (CCL).

The current issue of CCL’s regular online publication, Lessons in Learning, entitled Let the children play, examines how parents can support their children’s development by making sure that there is time for play that serves the child’s purposes and not the adult’s. This can be done by creating an environment that ensures a balance between free play and more structured learning.

“The physical and social environments in which Canadian children develop have changed over the past several decades,” says Dr. Jane Hewes, the report’s author and chair of the Early Childhood Development Program at Grant MacEwan College in Edmonton, Alta. “Creating and maintaining an environment conducive to rich, spontaneous play is important, as is interacting with children in ways that enhance their learning in play, without interrupting the flow and direction of play.”

This Lessons in Learning article was prepared by CCL’s Early Childhood Learning Knowledge Centre, which is led by Dr. Richard Tremblay, CEO of the Centre of Excellence for Early Childhood Development.

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The Canadian Council on Learning is an independent, not-for-profit corporation funded through an agreement with Human Resources and Social Development Canada. Its mandate is to promote and support evidence-based decisions about learning throughout all stages of life, from early childhood through to the senior years.

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