Remember how much fun it was to run around the playground after school even though you
knew you should probably go meet your waiting mother?
Yeah, that playtime might have turned you into a pretty good human.
Hey guys, Amy here with you on DNews today talking about everyone’s favourite thing:
not working!
Playing is actually crucial in childhood development, giving kids a safe and fun way to learn the
physical, intellectual, and social skills that will ultimately turn them into well-rounded
adults.
One common type of play is fear-based play; think climbing trees where the danger is falling
and getting hurt.
Kids will typically start with a low tree and gradually climb higher, taking risks in
moderation and at their own pace.
It’s a way for kids to explore fear safely.
They learn to manage their emotions and understand that they can control their fear, fear doesn’t
control them; something any adult would do well to remember.
Mock fighting similarly allows kids to develop emotional depth.
Play arguing with a best friend will teach kids to know when they need to walk away for
self-protection or calm down and solve the issue.
Even playing out fantastical scenarios like running from an imaginary witch through an
imaginary forest has benefits.
Playing through scenarios that evoke fear, anger, and sadness all help kids learn to
deal with these emotions.
In older children, play allows kids to blow off steam and recharge their brains, which
means recess is actually an important part of the school day.
One 2006 study found that kids who have recess breaks lasting 10 to 20 minutes were able
to focus better afterwards and were ultimately more successful in academics.
And the benefits of play don’t disappear when we reach adulthood; think drawing, a
hanging out at the beach…
basically anything that you enjoy that distances you from sources of stress.
Research shows that unstructured play is a vital break from life’s daily stresses.
Playing relieves stress, boosts creativity, improves brain function, and can even improve
our relationships with peers by building stronger bonds of trust, meaning those horrible icebreakers
you play on office retreats are actually kinda useful.
Play, non-sexual in this case, can also help couples rekindle a romance, allowing them
to explore new levels of emotional intimacy.
So a lot of this sounds anecdotal, but there is research backing up these claims.
Granted, experiments have been done on rats and monkeys because there isn’t really a
humane way to measure the effects of play deprivation on humans.
One 1964 study published in the Journal of Comparative Neurology saw a group of neuroscientists
raise rats in two different settings: one group in solitary confinement and the other
in an exciting space filled with toys.
When the researchers examined the rats’ brains, they found that those raised in the
toy-filled space had thicker cerebral cortices, the outer layer of neural tissue responsible
for memory, attention, perception, awareness, thought, language, and consciousness.
Subsequent research confirmed that the rats raised in the stimulating environment had
bigger brains.
More recent research found that after bouts of rough-and-tumble play, rats show increased
levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor, a protein that is essential for the growth
and maintenance of brain cells.
And that same protein has been found to increase when rats are free to explore their surroundings.
So playing is great!
But according to Boston College psychology professor Peter Gray, free play time is becoming
a thing of the past.
In an article in the American Journal of Play, he said that since 1955, children’s free
play time has been steadily declining, in large part because adults are exercising increased
control over their kids.
The effect is that mental health in adolescents and adults is declining.
So do what you can for your brain and start playing now!
And it’s a great time, too!
After a ten-year wait, the all-new Toyota Tacoma is finally here, and it’s been fully
redesigned to play whenever and wherever you want.
The new Tacoma encourages you to break the rules and play now.
I feel a lot less guilty about my Spice Girls dance breaks now.
aude dev Let us know in the comments below and don’t forget to subscribe for more DNews
every day of the week.
I feel a lot less guilty about my Spice Girls dance breaks now.
What do you guys do to recharge your brains with play?
Let us know in the comments below and keep coming back to Test Tube for more DNews every
single day of the week.
I feel a lot less guilty about my Spice Girls dance breaks now.
What do you guys do to recharge your brains with play?
Let us know on the Discovery News Facebook page or on Twitter @DNews.
And you can find me, too!
I’m @astvintagespace!
Thanks for watching!