Movement Play
Movement play means moving just because it’s fun. Things like chase, tag, hide and seek, and tree climbing fall into this category. Movement is a powerful way for kids to play.
Research that has been done on physical play shows that this kind of play can re-energize and reset a child’s nervous system. This means that they are more able to concentrate on challenging tasks after a movement break, like recess.
Movement can also help kids with self-regulation. Peter Gray, Ph.D., who wrote the book Free to Learn, speaks about how rough-and-tumble play can help kids learn how to manage emotions, like fear and anger, and is a healthy part of social and cognitive development. The movement activities listed below work on social skills like problem solving, communication, taking turns, working together, understanding personal space, managing frustration, and patience.
While there are a lot of movement games that can involve groups of children, these ideas for moving are ones that can be done with just two, since that is the ideal place to start for kids who are building social skills and friendships.
Ideas for Movement Play
Badminton
Basketball
Bikes
Catch
Climb trees
Frisbee
Hopscotch
Jump Rope
Mini-Golf
Playground
Rock Climbing - indoors or outdoors
Roller Skating
Scooters
See-saw
Simple Races
Skateboarding
Slackline
Skipping
Soccer
Stomp Rockets
Table Tennis
Tag
Taking a walk
Trampoline - indoors or outdoors
Zipline
Inside: An incredible collection of play ideas for families during times when they need to stay at home. Also, why play helps at this time, and how we can view this as an opportunity to re-connect .
Usually, as families, we have busy schedules, and people are often going to sports practice or games, lessons, or after school activities. Because of the coronavirus and social distancing, things are getting canceled everywhere. This is a stressful time, and things seem to be changing day-to-day. Overall, what this means is that families are going to be spending a lot more time at home.
Playing board games is a fantastic way to work on social skills for kids. As a therapist, I play a lot of games both in individual and group therapy. As a mom, I also enjoy playing games with my kids. During this podcast episode, I talk about four games I love:
The play date has been getting some negative press, with people listing all the things they don’t like about them. There are pros and cons to everything, so I decided to explain why I appreciate play dates.
Inside: Directions for a small group lesson on using paper airplanes to practice following directions. This activity is part of the Social Skills for Kids Book.
Inside: Definition of 16 play types from Bob Hughes and ideas for play materials to encourage variety in the way children play.
Definition of play:
“Engage in activity for enjoyment and recreation rather than a serious or practical purpose.”
Inside: An overview of 10 games that can be used to work on social-emotional learning at school, in small group settings or at home.
What was your favorite game to play as a kid? For me, it was Monopoly. My sister and I played this game all the time - it would keep us entertained for hours on a cold winter day.
Inside: a list of social skills, both external (interacting with others) and internal (your inner thoughts & feelings) with playful ways to practice them.
Recently I went to a symposium on play where Stuart Brown, author of Play: How it Shapes the Mind, Opens the Imagination and Invigorates the Soul, was speaking. I took off my mom yoga pants and put on real ones, drove to the symposium and sat down at a table. I pretended that I'm not an introvert and started talking to my neighbor. After I gave her my 30 second description of Encourage Play, she said “that sounds great but what does that really mean?”
Inside: An interview with Missy Benson from Playworld, talking about the importance of outdoor play and inclusive play, and the new PlayForm 7 in the Boston area.
“Oh. my. Goodness!!!” my daughter shrieked with excitement. My son’s eyes widened and he took off running toward the playful chaos of the playground.
This is one of my new favorite social skills games! Why? Because not only do I enjoy playing, children really enjoy playing. I found this game at the Chicago Toy and Game Fair. As soon as I saw it, I wanted to play with my clients to see how they reacted. And it was a resounding positive response.
We are always looking to have some fun outside with the kids, but we don’t always have a ton of supplies on hand. When we want to get the kids out and moving every day, here are some of our favorite things to do:
I love when my kids can play outside. I try to get them outside every single day. However, the weather doesn’t always cooperate for outdoor fun. At those times when you are stuck inside the house for whatever reason, try some of these activities:
We started going to a new dentist a few weeks ago and one of the prizes at the end was a HUGE balloon. They’ve lasted a while. My kids love balloons and ask to play with them frequently. Here are some simple ideas for playing with balloons.
When we traveled this summer, I kept our toy bag quite limited. I challenged myself to work with everyday items to use as toys for the kids when we were there. I even made a Pinterest Board with easy activities to do while traveling. Once we got settled, I took inventory of what was ready in the condo and went shopping for other basic items. One of the first projects we made were coffee filter sun catchers, very easy because we had coffee filters in the condo.
I love watching videos about the importance of play and how it affects children and adults. Play is so wonderful, and it’s how we learn. Check out my five favorite videos about play here.