Supporting Play: How to Engage with Your Child

Kaitlin Berzsenyi M.A., CCC-SLP

Playtime is so much more than just fun! In fact, it’s the foundation for your child’s cognitive, social, and emotional growth. By engaging with your child during their playtime, you can not only help them develop essential life skills but also foster their creativity. If you’re looking to learn more about supporting your child’s play, we’re here to help with clear, practical tips and strategies you can easily follow.  For even more insights on early play, check out The Power of Play-Understanding Types and Stages.

Tips for Supporting Your Child’s Play

To make playtime engaging, educational, and fun, try these easy techniques:

• Keep it Playful: First, use an enthusiastic, playful tone while interacting with your child.
• Show, Don’t Tell: Next, use gestures, point, or act things out to demonstrate new ideas.
• Reinforce Learning: Then, repeat new words or concepts multiple times to reinforce understanding.
• Pause for Reactions: Afterward, give your child enough time to process and respond to what you’ve shared.
• Get Moving: Lastly, add physical movement to reinforce vocabulary or concepts.

Example in Action

Let’s say your child is playing with cars. Here’s how you can turn it into a learning opportunity. First, you can introduce the words “fast” and “slow” by demonstrating. Roll a car quickly and say, “Fast, fast, fast!” Then, move a car slowly while saying, “Now sloooow.” After that, offer choices by asking, “Should the next car go fast or slow?”

Another great tip is to expand their language. For example, if your child says, “Look!” while pointing at a bus, you can respond with, “Look, a big bus!” Even if they don’t repeat it right away, they’re still building their vocabulary.

With these techniques, you can turn playtime into a meaningful, fun, and educational experience for your child!

The Value of Structured and Unstructured Play

Both structured and unstructured play are crucial for child development. By striking the right balance, you can give your child the best of both worlds.

Structured Play

Structured play involves activities with clear rules or goals, often guided by an adult. For example, this type of play includes:

• Games like Simon Says or puzzles
• Sports/Dance classes
• Creative activities like arts, crafts, or cooking

As a result, structured play helps build skills like problem-solving, patience, and active listening. Furthermore, it’s a great way for children to learn goal-setting and teamwork.

Unstructured Play

On the other hand, unstructured play is child-led with no set rules or objectives. This type of play includes:

• Pretend play (dolls, dress-up, kitchen sets)
• Playground exploration
• Sensory activities (Play-Doh, sand)
• Drawing or fort-building

In contrast to structured play, unstructured play nurtures independence, confidence, and social-emotional growth. Additionally, giving children the freedom to explore in their own way allows them to experiment and express creativity.

Finding the Right Balance

Ultimately, finding the right balance between the two is key. Observe your child to discover how they engage with both styles of play. Then, tailor activities to their personality and developmental stage to ensure a well-rounded play experience.

Supporting Your Child’s Social Play and Interaction

Play also serves as an essential tool for children to build social skills, regulate emotions, and learn how to communicate. According to Dr. Sandra Russ, a renowned child psychologist, “The world of pretend play lets children express their ideas, emotions, and visions of themselves and others.”

To better understand how social play develops, here’s an overview of the stages of social play:

1. Unoccupied Play (Infants): At this stage, infants simply watch their surroundings and make spontaneous movements.
2. Solitary Play (Infants): Gradually, they begin exploring objects independently.
3. Onlooker Play (Toddlers): As they grow, toddlers start watching other kids play without directly engaging.
4. Parallel Play (Toddlers): Over time, they begin playing alongside peers without interaction.
5. Associative Play (Preschoolers): At this point, they start playing in groups, sharing materials but without a common goal.
6. Collaborative Play (Preschool+): Finally, they engage in fully interactive play with shared goals and teamwork.

Supporting Your Child’s Social Play

For a child in the parallel play stage, it’s helpful to arrange low-pressure playdates where they can play alongside peers. Over time, they’ll build confidence and gradually transition into more interactive, collaborative play.

Object Play for Hands-On Learning

In addition to social play, object play is another critical aspect of development as children use it to explore and learn about their environment. Here’s how it progresses:

1. Exploratory Play (2-4 months): Early on, children start mouthing or touching objects to explore their surroundings.
2. Relational Play (5-10 months): Next, they begin using two objects together, like banging blocks.
3. Functional Play (10-12 months): As they grow, they start using objects as intended, such as stacking rings.
4. Symbolic Play (12-18 months): Finally, they enter the world of pretending, like feeding a doll or using a block as a phone.

To encourage object play, you can provide age-appropriate toys and actively join in their exploration for added fun and learning.

Mixing Play with Daily Life

Incorporating play into everyday routines can seamlessly make learning both fun and effortless. Here are some practical ways:

• Turn Chores into Games: For example, race to clean up toys or create a fun song while tidying up.
• Practice Problem-Solving: Use pretend play to rehearse tricky transitions, such as getting ready to leave the house.
• Add Movement to Learning: Encourage jumping while counting, clapping syllables, or acting out animal movements.

With these small, playful moments, you can help your child build valuable skills while staying engaged.

More Ideas for Supporting Your Child’s Play

Looking for more inspiration? Here’s a quick list to get started:

Structured Play Activities:

• Movement songs like “Freeze Dance”
• Games such as Red Light, Green Light or Hide and Seek
• Board games, puzzles, and crafts
• Sports activities like soccer or dance

Unstructured Play Activities:

• Free drawing or sensory bins with sand, rice, or shaving cream
• Pretend play with dolls, kitchen sets, or dress-up
• Fort-building or imaginative storytelling
• Outdoor adventures at the playground, climbing, or exploring nature

The best part? You don’t need fancy toys—just your time and imagination! After all, you are your child’s favorite playmate.

Final Thoughts

Play is one of the most powerful tools for bonding with your child and supporting their development. Whether structured or unstructured, these activities encourage creativity, problem-solving, social skills, and emotional growth.

By understanding your child’s play stages and preferences, you can create enriching experiences that turn learning through play into a joyful adventure. Remember, the goal isn’t perfection, but connection and growth.

Additional Resources to Explore:

• National Institute for Play for in-depth research
• Pathways.org for age-appropriate activity ideas
• The Hanen Centre for tips on encouraging language through play

Happy playing! 🎉