What is free play?
Free play is when the choice of what to play and how to play it is left entirely up to children. They make their own decisions, come up with their own ideas and initiatives, and explore their environment. Through free play, children can learn, use their imagination, and improve their coordination, balance and muscle strength, all while having fun.
While engaging in free play, children are physically active, which lets them develop new motor skills that will be useful in their everyday lives, including jumping, climbing, running, avoiding obstacles and more. What they learn becomes a powerful source of pride and self-confidence. As a result, children associate physical activity with positive emotions, which makes them want to repeat these experiences daily. Hence the importance of giving children plenty of chances to move, interact and face challenges.
How can I encourage free play and provide my child with opportunities to be active?
- Turn off your screens
By spending more screen-free time as a family, you will enjoy more special moments together and set an example of how to manage screen time wisely.
2. Get outdoors as much as you can
When children are outside, they are twice as likely to be physically active. The freedom of movement that comes from being outdoors encourages children to exert more energy and test out new skills. The possibilities are virtually endless: they have more space to move around in and can interact with natural objects like rocks, trees, sand, grass, snow, puddles and more and incorporate them into their play. It is also a great way to reconnect with traditional practices, most of which were held outside.
3. Explore different environments
By visiting different places — parks, the bush, the schoolyard and more — and exploring the land around them, children are exposed to a plethora of opportunities to learn and explore. Letting them play in new and stimulating environments from one season to the next can have a very positive impact on their creativity, autonomy, curiosity and overall development.
4. Get friends and family involved
Be sure to be on the lookout for ways to encourage children to engage in free play with peers or family members. Not only are these experiences good for their social and emotional development, but they are also opportunities to learn how to settle conflicts and interact within a group.
5. Offer praise
Although, by definition, free play is not structured or guided, feel free to congratulate and reward children when they do well at something, all while ensuring there are restrictions in place where needed to protect their safety. This helps children learn to respect their own limits, manage risk and gain confidence in their ability to face new challenges.
Source: Table sur le mode de vie physiquement actif (TMVPA), À nous de jouer! : jeu actif et jeu libre pour le développement de l’enfant. Quebec: Ministère de l’Éducation et de l’Enseignement supérieur, 2017.