Unstructured Play Essay

Remedy for Today’s Children: Structured Play Today 40% of children suffer from ADHD, while 60% suffer from depression(Institute 3). Simple remedy: Structured Play. Structured play: is a type of play that is goal/objective based and generally has a structure as to how it should be carried out (Nelson Par 8). Contrary to structured play there is the idea of unstructured play. Unstructured play is a type of play that is unplanned which is the primary reason it is also termed as ‘spontaneous play’ or ‘free play’. This type of lacks adult supervision and guidance (Nelson Par 9). Over the last few years there has been a debate on whether early childhood playtime should be structured or unstructured. Early childhood playtime should be structured

A child's overall development can be mental, physical, and emotional. In the article “Give me that old time recess”, the author discussed the negative consequences of children losing playtime. “In a growing number of studies, diminished opportunities for outdoor playtime have been linked with school difficulties, increased childhood anxiety, disconnection from nature, attention deficit disorder, and the epidemic of childhood obesity” (Gross-Loh Par 4). This quote is important because children today are suffering more from obesity, and attention deficit disorders due to the decrease of structured play. Children are becoming less active due to the the dependency on technology. The increase in obesity is the result of the rise in children having smart phones. With children having smartphones, they lose the desire to play outside. The lack of play causes an increase in depression among children and teens. (Tanner Par 10). This is important because today’s generation has a large dependency on technology “Sixty-five percent of children under eight years old watch television daily. On average, they spend about an hour and a half (100 minutes to be exact) watching TV every day.” (Conrad Par 3). Childrens dependency on technology is related to depression because many children have a hard time communicating and socializing with other children due to technology ruining children's interpersonal skills (Bindley Par 4).

The recess project has become a well renowned program. The recess project's goal is to advocate structured play among today’s children. “Recess leaders help the older children on the playground become leaders themselves, guiding younger children as they learn how to juggle or make crafts or do Zumba, the dance like exercise regimen set to fast-paced music”(Paul Par 5) . This is important because recess leaders from the recess project felt the need to help the older children on the playground. Recess leaders proved that with guidance and structure the older children gain the responsibility to guide the younger children in complex activities. Structured play drives strategy and following directions because with structured play children are given a specific set of guidelines and rules. After receiving rules and guidelines it is then up to the child to go from there and play(Nelson Par 1). There are numerous activities involved with structured play. The varying activities teach children how to follow and understand directions. This also helps children complete tasks. Various structured activities include board games, puzzles, and arts and crafts(Nelson Par 3). Anyone who has ever dealt with a child or children know things may become very messy, what if there was a way children can be taught life skills such as cleaning? In fact that is what structured play can do. As children are