By Mary Bassett
My extended family loves to get together for dinner, playing games, and having fun. Towards the end of one particularly fun evening, my 4-year-old cousin asked to see my phone. When I asked her why she needed to see my phone, she told me she wanted to play games on it, I was shocked! It was a beautiful Sunday evening, but she wanted to play the games that were on my phone (joke’s on her because I didn’t have any games on my phone)! I chuckled a bit in disbelief and suggested that we go play outside. She scoffed and walked away to the next relative and asked to play on their phone.
We should be encouraging our children to play outside! Get them off of their screens, and out of the house. In order to do this, we need to get off of our screens, put down the phone, and make time to play! “When parents… join with [their children] in child-driven play, they are given a unique opportunity to see the world from their child’s vantage point as the child navigates a world perfectly created just to fit his or her needs…Parents who have the opportunity to glimpse into their children’s world learn to communicate more effectively with their children and are given another setting to offer gentle, nurturing guidance” (Ginsburg, 2007). Childhood does not last forever and all too soon the requests of “Can you play with me?” will be gone, so don’t miss the chance to get to know your child in the world they create through their play.
When our kids are outside, they are gaining “cognitive, physical, social, and emotional well-being, offering the necessary conditions for children to thrive and learn. Through play, the child can experiment, solve problems, think creatively, cooperate with others, etc., gaining a deeper knowledge about his or herself and the world. From an early age, the possibility to experience several opportunities for unstructured play, in which the child can decide what to do, with whom and how, promotes positive self-esteem, autonomy, and confidence” (Bento et. al., 2017). Make time as a family to “play” outside without screens, with just your imaginations.
Ready, set, GO!
- Play tag
- Ride around on your scooter
- Challenge your neighbors to a paper airplane contest
- Go on a bike ride
- Rollerblade
- Skateboard/longboard
- Go for a walk
- Go for a run
- Play at a park
- Throw a frisbee
- Play “the ground is lava!”
- Go to the zoo
- Play miniature golf
- Host a lemonade stand
- Jump on a trampoline
- Go berry or apple picking
- Color on the sidewalk with chalk
- Have a water balloon fight
- Plant a garden
- Jump rope
- Play four square
- Play wall-ball
- Set up a slip ‘n slide
- Run through the sprinklers
- Go hiking
- Splash around at your closest lake
- Find some ice cream!
- Play hide ‘n seek
- Have a scavenger hunt
- Have a picnic
- Go to an amusement park
- Go to a water park or splash pad
- Be a tourist in your own town
- Go horseback riding
- Have a garage sale
- Go on a scavenger hunt
- Go to a farmer’s market
- Make a music video
- Volunteer/Find a service project
- Go swimming
- Make s’mores
- Have a bonfire
- Go geocaching
- Play flashlight tag
- Play freeze tag
- Climb a tree
- Build a treehouse
- Visit an animal shelter
- Go rock climbing
- Have an outdoor movie night
- Fly a kite
- Go camping
- Go fishing
- Have a nerf war!
- Walk your dog (you can rent a puppy if you don’t have a dog)
- Play volleyball
- Challenge some friends to a game of kickball
- Play soccer
- Play basketball
- Go rafting/river tubing
- Make a bird feeder
- Play with bubbles
- Feeding the ducks
- Find a local county fair
- Play hide-and-go-seek
- Have a sack race
- Paint balloon darts
- Play kickball
- Create an obstacle course
- Play capture the flag
- Play red rover
- Race down your street
- Play dodgeball
- Find a hill to roll down
- Go bird watching
- Pick flowers
- Kayak or canoe in your local lake
Encourage your kids to play outside, get dirty, and use their imaginations. Children need to be outside and be creative. “Imagining, trying new ways of doing things, and experimenting help develop critical thinking in children and foster creative problem-solving. Furthermore, imagination builds social-emotional development by allowing children to contemplate different resolutions, thus boosting children’s confidence, which can be used in interactions with others.” (Bright Horizons).
Looking for more helpful ideas? Check out The Danger With Using Screens as a Digital Pacifier. Or, use our lesson plan for your next family night, Using Technology for Good.
Noah’s New Phone: A Story About Using Technology for Good is also an engaging story with great discussion questions that can help you and your family discuss how to have a great balance between tech and family life.
Mary Bassett recently graduated with her Bachelors of Science in Marriage and Family Studies from Brigham Young University of Idaho. She is currently an intern writer for Educate Empower Kids. She hopes to one day work as a Family Life Educator. She is passionate about educating families on how important love is in the home.
Citations:
Bento, G., & Disa, G. (2017, April 06). The importance of outdoor play for young children’s healthy development. Retrieved August 17, 2018, from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2444866416301234.
Bright Horizons. (n.d.). Nurturing Creativity & Imagination for Child Development. Retrieved August 9, 2018, from https://www.brighthorizons.com/family-resources/e-family-news/2014-nurturing-creativity-and-imagination-for-child-development.
Ginsburg, K. R. (2007, January 01). The Importance of Play in Promoting Healthy Child Development and Maintaining Strong Parent-Child Bonds. Retrieved August 17, 2018, from http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/119/1/182.
