Do parents really have the time to dedicate 20 minutes from their busy schedules and indulge in productive ‘play time’ with their kids? The sad truth remains that our busy work schedules keep us occupied during the day and most evenings are spent doing household chores, leaving aside no time & energy to play with children. When children exclaim ‘Mommy come play with me!’ the parent tries to divert the child’s attention by getting them some dessert and promising to make time over the weekends.

Kids Need Quality Play Time with Parents

While children are capable of discovering the world around them through ‘solo play’, research suggests that they also need dedicated playtime with their parents. In fact, toddlers & preschoolers find every reason to spend time with their parents, because it makes them feel loved and taken care of. So, whether it is ‘physical play’ which involves movement or ‘fantasy play’ where children are free to use their imagination, it doesn’t matter, as long as you are spending time ‘playing’ with them. Schools in most developed regions including the UAE, follow a play-way method by which the focus is on learning through play and not instructional mediums. Through this blog, we would like to highlight a few benefits that kids experience by getting involved in play-time with their parents;

Learning About Their Progress

There’s a lot you learn from each other when you schedule ‘play time’ in your agenda. The vocabulary that your kid is picking up in school and the motor skills that he has mastered, will come to the forefront while observing him play. From stacking Legos to form a make-do tower, to being able to code a dancing Robot by themselves using intuitive coding elements from LEGO® Education SPIKE™ Prime Set, your children have come a long way through ‘play-way’. To learn more about LEGO® Education products and their availability in Dubai, and other GCC Regions across the Middle East, visit our website Knowledge hub shop.

Fostering Bonds

Playing together is fun and helps strengthen relationships with your child. This special time that you dedicate now is never going to come back once your child blooms into a teenager and has his own set of friend circle. Being friendly and approachable, gives children the confidence to share their worries & frustrations with you, thereby strengthening the parent-child bond.

Being a Role Model

Children are constantly observing and learning something new, though it may not seem so obvious. Kids learn a great deal from their parents by keeping an eye on their actions, habits, and style of communication. Sooner than you would know, they start imitating your expressions! Hence, at all times including play, parents must speak positive words of encouragement, have a keen ear for listening, look presentable, and practice self-control.

Playing is fun

When parents set themselves loose and just have fun, they show a pleasant side of themselves, rather than always being instructional and telling children what to do and what not to do. At playtime, conversations can flow in a light-hearted manner and a riot of giggles can happily take over, thereby infusing happiness into the child’s emotional well-being.

Now that you are aware of the numerous benefits of indulging in play-time with your kids, we are sure you would diligently make an effort to start right away.