Learning
to Play
by
Carol Castellano
Reprinted from In Touch, the newsletter of Parents
of Blind Children-NJ
Most
parents know that children are supposed to play and
that somehow as they play, development will take place.
But many of us have concerns about our child's ability
to play and would welcome positive guidance on the subject.
Dr. Lorraine McCune, Director of the Infant/Early Childhood
Interdisciplinary Studies Program at Rutgers University,
and Maureen Saar, Infant Service Counselor for the NJ
Commission for the Blind, joined us in September for
an evening of discussion on the subject of play.
What
is play? According to Dr. McCune, play is what a child
chooses to do and does in a happy way. Play awakens
curiosity which leads to an urge to explore the world.
During play, the child controls the activity and has
a sense of security because he/she knows what to do.
A child's play involves repetition or practicing what
is already known. When the child has learned all that
he/she can at a certain level of play, he/she will move
on to the next level. The child's inner striving for
growth and an inner urge to challenge him/herself causes
development to occur.
Sometimes,
however, the inner drive toward development gets "stuck."
Some children with disabilities may not come up with
everything they need on their own to keep moving along.
Parents then need to figure out where the disability
might be interfering with development and to help such
children find more than they would on their own.
Dr.
McCune has some suggestions for parents who want to
help a child who is "stuck":
Try to connect with the child's natural striving for
development. We can join the child at the child's level
of play and offer toys and other objects and opportunities
for interaction with us.
Let the play be child-directed. We can suggest and model
activities, but the child must be free to respond in
his/her own way. The goal is to help the child's inner
striving for development work better, so we should find
out the level where the child is comfortable and follow
the child's responses.
Make small moves and gently keep trying different things
until the child is interested. The child will either
accept our offers or not. Where the child will reach
out is the important thing. If the child shows no interest
in a certain object or kind of play, that means we haven't
found the right object or kind of play yet!
Watch the child's reaction to our offers. If he/she
cries or becomes frustrated, we haven't found the right
toy or activity. The child must feel good about the
play, must feel successful and in control. He/she needs
to feel secure about knowing how to handle what is going
on. If the challenge we present is too great, the child
will react with tears, frustration, boredom, or other
signals. Respect this! It's not play if it's not being
enjoyed! We can't make children enjoy what we
want them to enjoy.
We
can't make them do what we want them to do in play.
It must be their play, their joy. We must understand
and respect this and allow them to feel secure and to
be in control.
Suggestions
were offered for children at various stages, from a
child who only wants to sit and mouth one favorite object
to a child who is ready for pretend play. The idea for
joining the child at his/her level works at all stages.
Dr. McCune pointed out the importance of pretend play
by explaining that pretend play develops the child's
ability to hold and manipulate ideasin other words,
to think! Pretend play is the child's way of remembering
and thinking about his/her own life, and what he/she
has experienced.
Since
toys and other "props" may not hold much interest to
a blind/visually impaired child, Dr. McCune suggests
letting the child use his/her own body for pretend play
for a longer time than a sighted child might. For example,
pretending to give a doll a bath may not be interesting
to the child, but climbing into a big box and pretending
to take a bath him/ herself might work well.
Play,
Dr. McCune pointed out, is usually a good indicator
of cognitive development but for the blind child it
may not be. Normal mental development may be taking
place, but the blind child may not be able to demonstrate
it through his/her play. Take care not to let someone
who might be evaluating your child draw negative conclusions
about his/her mental development just because he/she
cannot play well. Another factor that might influence
the quality of a child's play is the child's strength.
Ongoing illness or low energy takes a toll on a child,
and the child may choose easier things to do.
Dr.
McCune concluded by emphasizing the importance of the
child's being allowed and encouraged to make choices
and take the initiative in play. This will lead to what
we want for them in the futureto be able to think
and make decisions for themselves.
|