Learn through play
By Zenaida Serrano
Advertiser Staff Writer
| |||
 |
|
||
|
|||
|
|
||
| |||
|
|
||
| |||
|
|
||
| |||
|
|
||
Among the sweet joys of 3-year-old Lili Mahuka-Cummings' young life is spending time in her backyard, splashing around in a plastic tub filled with soapy water.
"She'll just sit in the tub and just play with the bubbles for a long time," said the toddler's mother, Cindy Mahuka, 47, of Kailua. "It's like magic."
Other times, the youngster happily occupies herself with her Mr. Potato Head, doll house, doctor's play kit or spongy alphabet letters.
"She'll get something and spread it all out on the living-room floor," said Mahuka, who doesn't mind that Lili's play time can sometimes get a little messy.
Being able to play freely — when kids don't have to worry about being neat or following too many rules — is crucial for a child's development because it sharpens creativity and problem-solving skills, said Mary Goulet and Heather Reider, founders of Moms Town.com, a virtual community for moms, and authors of "The MomsTown Guide to Getting It All."
"Unstructured play is important for children because they can use their imagination more," Reider e-mailed from San Diego. "Children, if left to their own creativity, oftentimes settle into a peaceful space where they start looking at their toys and surroundings in a more creative way."
The authors define unstructured play as open-ended play in which children are given freedom to create their own rules and are limited only by their imaginations. Examples include painting, drawing and building.
Allowing children to play as they please encourages more than a vivid imagination, said Mahuka, who also is a curriculum coordinator at Kailua Elementary School.
"It fosters ... their independence, to be able to take care of themselves and entertain themselves," Mahuka said.
Goulet, Reider and other parents share their ideas on different types of unstructured play, whether indoors or out, and how to make the most of that time with the kiddies.
OLD-FASHIONED FUN
Lane and Nina Martin of Pauoa Valley have special areas in their home where their children can run wild with their fantasy adventures.
"They have their kid areas in our house with their kid (toy) boxes," said Lane Martin, 37, a state law-enforcement officer.
The kids — Denika, 11, Duncan, 6, and D'Elle, 5, — use their space to play house with Barbie dolls or create elaborate spacecraft with building blocks.
Goulet and Reider encourage such "old-fashioned fun," that is, play that doesn't involve mind-numbing cartoon shows and video games. Their other suggestions:
OUTDOOR PLAY
When there's pleasant weather, the Kane kids of 'Ewa — An-geliq, 8, Kyra, 6, Odyn, 3, and Joie, 1 1/2 — have tons of fun under the sun.
"They like to draw with chalk on the ground; they draw pictures and sometimes they do their spelling lists on the ground," said their mother, Jessica Kane, 26. "They also like to play in the yard, pulling weeds with their dad, using their own plastic (gardening) tools."
Passing the time outdoors and even getting a little dirty are among the things that make childhood memorable, Goulet said.
"If there is a little bit of sand tracked through the house, let it go and enjoy that the kids are outdoors having fun," Goulet e-mailed. "... Being outdoors is a great way for them to expend energy."
Kane agrees: "There's only a limited time when they get to be kids," she said.
Goulet and Reider share more ideas for simple but memorable outdoor activities for the whole family:
Reach Zenaida Serrano at zserrano@honoluluadvertiser.com.
