Do you remember when you were a child? When I think back, what I remember is quite different to the childhood my daughter, and many of her little friends, experience today.
As the world has speeded up, it seems we have a constant need for stimulation and this transfers to our children. I think my mum was a great mum. While I remember doing things with her, I can never remember her playing with me. I do remember playing on my own with my toys and being perfectly happy doing so.
I think guilt has a big part to play, it certainly does for me. We only have to glance at our phones when our kids are with us and the guilt descends. We feel a need to be micromanaging our children. Making sure they are occupied every minute of the day! Is this what’s really best for them?
With their after school clubs, weekend classes and nursery or school too, kid’s have A LOT of structure in their lives. This is why free play is so important. Letting children have the freedom and space to play without structure is an essential part of their development. Free play allows for the development of social skills. Let’s them learn about the world and also helps them to develop physical and cognitive skills.
Play England defines ‘Free Play’ as
“…children choosing what they want to do, how they want to do it and when they want to stop and try something else. Free Play has no external goals set by adults and has no adult imposed curriculum. Although adults usually provide the space and resources for Free Play and might be involved, the child takes the lead and the adults respond to cues from the child.”
Petits Filous has just launched its #PetitsFilousPlayFree project to ensure Free Play doesn’t become a thing of the past. This campaign aims to champion Free Play and its benefits by encouraging parents to embrace free unstructured play every day.
Free play taps into kid’s imagination and encourages them to think creatively. As adults we have a lot of context that we have developed over the years. If we’re not careful we can impose context and ‘our way’ onto our kids, before they’ve been able to think creatively and use their imaginations. Free Play has also been seen to help their negotiation skills and team building.
We don’t need to jump in at every moment and fill the gaps in for our kids. Just the opposite, in fact, we need to stand back and let them explore the world their way.
To launch this campaign, Petits Filous is working with Anita Cleare, parenting expert and co-founder of The Positive Parenting Project.
Free Play isn’t about just leaving your kids to it. It’s about letting them take the lead. They decide what to play with, how and for how long; it’s child-driven. Petits Filous is a fab cool snack that Ava loves when she’s Free Playing and all the other times really! They even have Petits Filous pouches to make snacking on the go even easier!
As parents we must be willing to let our kids get bored. This is not a reflection on us as parents. We aren’t failing. Getting bored helps kids think creatively and to look for solutions. It’s important not to always fill boredom with the TV or the tablet.
When I was a kid I remember playing for hours on my own in the garden. Sometimes with our old dog, Jack, Sometimes, just with my trusty toy friends. I remember playing with my Barbies and being perfectly content with my own imagination and company. Ava is just the same as I was. She loves being outside and adores animals, especially our dogs Lily and Lou Lou.
Playing freely in an unstructured way helps them to understand cause and effect. They jump in a puddle, they get soaked. This learning is immediate and it happened through a concrete action, rather than trying to absorb the theory.
Petits Filous is a favourite in our house. Sometimes, I think Ava lives on breadsticks and yoghurt. It’s a win as she loves Petits Filous AND I know it provides her with calcium and vitamin D, which are important for healthy bones (iii). One way kids’ can get their daily calcium needs is to make sure they get 3 portions of dairy a day. For example, a glass of milk, a piece of cheddar-type cheese and 1 small pot of Petits Filous fromage frais. Vitamin D is important too as it helps our absorb calcium from food (iii).
How much free play do your kids have? Do you feel the need to intervene and structure all of your kids activities?
Disclosure: “I’m working with Petits Filous and BritMums promoting the #PetitsFilousPlayFree campaign about the importance of free play.”
iii) EU Authorised Claim: ‘Calcium and vitamin D are needed for normal growth and development of bone in children’