40 Reasons Why Play is Crucial for Brain Development

Reason

“Play is our brain’s favorite way of learning.” — Diane Ackerman

“For very young children, all important learning takes place within the context of play. Play is exploration. Play is trying things. Play is trying to kind of figure out when you do one thing, something else happens.” — Dr. Jack Shonkoff, Harvard University

“The experience of play changes the connections of neurons at the front of your brain. Without play experiences, those neurons aren’t changed.” — Dr. Sergio Pellis, professor of neuroscience

“The experiences babies have during play help strengthen and expand networks of connections in their developing brains.” — Diane W. Bales, University of Georgia professor 

A 2014 study found that 6-year-old children who engaged in free play developed stronger executive functioning abilities, providing them the self-control to plan and achieve goals.

“Children need play. They NEED play to develop well. It’s not a luxury, it’s not something that we should regard as recess or a break from learning. It IS learning.” — Dr. Peter Gray

In 2018, the American Academy of Pediatrics released a clinical report that advised doctors to write prescriptions for play to reduce stress, promote social skills, and fuel cognitive growth.

“Play allows children to use their creativity while developing their imagination, dexterity, and physical, cognitive, and emotional strength. Play is important to healthy brain development.” — American Academy of Pediatrics

Play is deemed so essential for healthy child development that it is considered a human right for every child by the United Nations.

“As we await new discoveries from brain science, one finding is already clear: Play is a wonderful metaphor for active, engaged, meaningful, and socially interactive learning.” — National Association for the Education of Young Children

Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention supports that active students are better learners and recess increases physical activity and improves educational outcomes.

A recent study by the University of Cambridge analyzed decades of research on play-based learning and concluded that it can have a “greater positive effect” on math and spatial skills than more traditional approaches.

“Play naturally cultivates their enjoyment, motivation, and agency; while the inclusion of guidance by a supportive adult extends the scope for learning beyond what the child might achieve on their own.” — Society for Research on Child Development

“Play stimulates the parts of the brain involved in both careful, logical reasoning and carefree, unbound exploration.” — Greg McKeow

“Children are natural scientists — they come into the world ready to experiment and learn through play. And they use what they discover to not only adapt the structure of their brains but also strengthen the skills they need to continue being engaged, flexible learners for their whole lives.” — The LEGO Foundation

The American Academy of Pediatrics described recess as a “necessary break in the day for optimizing a child’s social, emotional, physical, and cognitive development.”

A study of young rats discovered that play activated the entire neocortex, and of the 1,200 genes measured, about one third of them were significantly changed with only a half-hour of play. Rats in enriched environments had thicker cerebral cortices. Play and exploration also triggered the secretion of BDNF, a substance essential for the growth of brain cells.

Exercise and movement are powerful brain foods. Blood vessels expand during physical activity, speeding up the delivery of oxygen, water, and glucose, which boosts brain power and learning retention.

A 2016 study found that regular short, unstructured play breaks helped children focus and be more productive and less stressed in school.

“Play helps children navigate complex social situations now and into adulthood. The new circuits the brain builds from play help create social agility.” — Cecilia Clark, Children’s Discovery Museum of San Jose

Chronic stress has been found to be toxic and detrimental for growing brains — play, especially outdoor play, is backed by science as a stress reliever and a healthy way to work through troubling emotions.

“At real play, children are in charge, instinctively making hundreds of decisions as they assess and determine the levels of risk they want to take, physically, emotionally and socially: mastering, day by day, an increasing repertoire of skills, adding to their bank of experience.” — Adrian Voce

A study discovered that play can stimulate the fight-or-flight response in a safe and healthy way (without triggering cortisol), allowing children to practice handling danger and stress.

In 2013, the National Academy of Medicine published a major report supporting the benefits of physical activity to children’s cognitive development and academic success.

“Play is not frivolous; it is brain building. Play has been shown to have both direct and indirect effects on brain structure and functioning.” — American Academy of Pediatrics

“Executive function and brain health underlie academic performance. Basic cognitive functions related to attention and memory facilitate learning, and these functions are enhanced by physical activity and higher aerobic fitness.” — National Library of Medicine

Play is key for helping both people and animals become more adept socially. One study found that the best predictor for academic performance in eighth grade was a child’s social skills in third grade.

“The highest form of research is essentially play.” — N.V. Scarfe, education researcher

Research by doctors at Yale University found that make-believe games are the “forerunners of the important capacity for forms of self-regulation including reduced aggression, delay of gratification, civility, and empathy.”

Finland is esteemed for the academic success of its students. Children enjoy around an hour of daily recess, as well as unstructured play breaks between each class.

A 2016 study found that young boys who spent more time sitting and less time playing did not progress as quickly in math and reading.

Studies have found that playing with blocks may enhance cognitive flexibility, or the ability to quickly shift focus from one relevant stimulus to another.

Research by the Seattle Children’s Research Institute found that children who played with blocks showed greater brain engagement than when watching educational DVDs.

Further evidence found that very young children who engaged in regular block play developed stronger language skills. The study lasted for six months.

“Children learn through doing — play is how they explore the world, learn to assess risk, try things out, and get to know themselves.” — Bethe Almeras

Psychologist Edward Fisher analyzed 46 studies on the cognitive benefits of play and concluded that sociodramatic play (when kids pretend together) “results in improved performances in both cognitive-linguistic and social affective domains.”

"Play is often talked about as if it were a relief from serious learning. But for children, play is serious learning. Play is really the work of childhood.” — Fred Rogers

A long-term study found that more complex play with LEGOs in preschool children correlated with higher mathematics achievement in high school, even after controlling for a child’s IQ.

The Oxford Handbook of the Development of Imagination states that pretend play boosts executive functioning skills. By exercising their imagination, kids learn to plan ahead, control their emotions, and expand their memory.

Brain scans found that playing with dolls activated the prefrontal brain regions of children, while solo tablet play did not. This suggests that doll play provides opportunities for the development of social-emotional skills, such as empathy.