Importance of Play in Child Development: Examining through Various Theories of Play

IMPORTANCE OF PLAY IN
CHILD DEVELOPMENT
Examining through various theories of play

Child Development – Physical aspect
 Arnold Gessell proposed the ‘maturational
theory’ in 1925, which is concerned with a
child’s physical development
 According to him, “pacing in children is
influenced by internal factors, such as
physical and mental development genetics”.
 Pellegrini, Dupuis and Smith (2007) assert,
“forms of physical activity play serve
primarily immediate developmental
functions”.

Theories of Play
 Play is activities that people especially
children engage in, mostly for amusement.
 It has an important role in child
development as it not only helps children
develop physically but also socially and
emotionally.
 “Physical play is associated with emotional
competence with peers especially in case of
boys”, found Biddle and Goudas (1996) in
their study.