Types of Play

1. Types of Play • Children’s play is categorized by: • ages of children at play • stages of development • variety or type of play • Categorizing play is complex because one must consider: • The use of objects in play are present or absent. • For example, a child who drinks from a toy cup and a child who pretends to drink from an imaginary cup are both playing. • Social aspects of play, for example, whether a child • is playing alone or with others. • Two common methods of describing play used extensively by researchers and practitioners are: • cognitive development adapted from Smilansky (1968) • social development described by Parten (1932).

2. Sensorimotor Repeated movements with or without objects such as banging blocks or shaking rattles Functional Manipulating objects in a functional manner or combining objects in play such as brushing hair with a comb or placing objects into containers Constructive Using toys to construct such as building a block tower Abstract Dramatic, symbolic-pretend (pretense) play such as using blocks to represent cookies while playing house or pretending to feed a doll with a bottle Games with clearly-defined rules Board games, tug of war, Duck Duck Goose etc. Stages of cognitive development and play(Smilansky, 1968)

3. Although these stages of play are used to describe children’s observed play as they age, it is incorrect to assume that, as children age, their play can be characterized by one category of play. A preschooler may use blocks to construct a garage (constructive play) or to represent cookies (symbolic play). These descriptions are useful for describing general features of children’s play, but should not be viewed as a strict developmental hierarchy to guide toy selection.

4. Stages of social development and play The change from immature, egocentric to more mature socialization follows a progression of steps. Parten (1932) describes stages of participation in play: Unoccupied 1-3 years of age ~The child is not engaged in any type of meaningful activity. He might wander the room, follow an adult, or move about with little interest. Parallel Play 2–3 years ~ The child will choose similar toys or activities and play near a group, but not interact with them. Often they talk “at” each other about different topics rather than with each other. One might be talking about her trip to Aunt Sally’s while the other is discussing his new puppy.

5. Onlooker 2 ½-3 ½ years ~ During this stage, children tend to watch each other play. They occasionally participate verbally but are more interested in watching others play rather than join in the activity.  Solitary independent play 4-5 years ~ The child spends time playing alone with toys not being used, making little or no effort to interact with the other children. Although typically seen at this age as well as at all stages of life, if only solitary play is used, some intervention may be appropriate.

6. Associative play 4-6 years ~ The children play together, interacting with each other in a common activity but independently without coordinating with the entire group. Cooperative 4-6 years ~ Children play and work together in an organized group sharing toys, ideas and labor. Parten, M.B. (1932) Social participation among preschool children. Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 27, 243-249