Never Underestimate The Benefits Of The Playground Games
Playground games entail much more than just fun and frolic. It is one of the first places where young children learn how to socialize and develop good sportsmanship skills through group activities.
Most people can still remember their first childhood games and how they competed with their peers to win the sack race or to throw a ball the furthest. The skills they acquired while merely participating in the playground games at school, unknowingly equipped them with very important values and moral lessons for life. Apart from the physical benefits such as fitness, muscle development and coordination, group activities help build character and promote healthy social skills.
Outdoor group activities such as running, jumping, skipping and kicking balls on the playground are children's first introduction to team work and social interaction - albeit in a informal, playful manner. This is where they learn to share, to care and that the world does not revolve only around them. Kids don't tolerate unfair, selfish behavior and will quickly reprimand a playmate who does not follow the rules or behaves unacceptably. In an electronic era where kids suffer increasingly from health problems due to obesity, isolation and inactivity, nothing beats team sports to keep a healthy balance.
It is said that kids can be the cruelest of cruel to their peers because they are too young to understand how damaging and lasting the impact of their words/behavior can be. A victim of such cruelty often suffers lifelong emotional problems as a result of traumatic childhood experiences. Any playground games and activities should therefore be closely supervised by knowledgeable and trained teachers or coaches who can skillfully intervene to turn potential playground fights into a positive moral lesson.
Especially young kids under the age of 4 should never be allowed to play in groups without proper supervision. Team activities differ from school to school and place to place, but most kids' first experience of playground games include fun activities with basic equipment such as ropes, balls and bats to improve their balance, eye-hand coordination, as well as their muscle development. These fun games also lay the groundwork for more advanced team sports to follow in future years, by teaching them from start the proper techniques of how to catch, kick and throw a ball, hold a bat or racket or how to bowl. Experience builds confidence and a child with a healthy self-esteem is seldom shy or depressed.
The old adage - a healthy body, a healthy mind - is more applicable than ever in today's life where society puts tremendous pressure on kids to excel in various fields. Research indicates that physical activity might also increase a child's academic ability.
The social, physical and mental benefits of group activities and team sport are innumerable. Apart from keeping a child active, fit and healthy, it promotes values and valuable social skills such as good team spirit, responsibility, problem solving, patience and perseverance. They learn there is no I in the word team and winning is not everything. When a team loses, a child learns how to overcome failure and how to cope with disappointments in life.
That silly little children's games may look like mere child's play, but it is the best educational tool in the world. It teaches young children to play with kids they don't necessarily like, to share and to respect others. Best of all, it gives kids the opportunity to be less selfish and to learn that things do not always go their way. Maybe, just maybe, the world would be a better place if there were playground games for adults too.
Most people can still remember their first childhood games and how they competed with their peers to win the sack race or to throw a ball the furthest. The skills they acquired while merely participating in the playground games at school, unknowingly equipped them with very important values and moral lessons for life. Apart from the physical benefits such as fitness, muscle development and coordination, group activities help build character and promote healthy social skills.
Outdoor group activities such as running, jumping, skipping and kicking balls on the playground are children's first introduction to team work and social interaction - albeit in a informal, playful manner. This is where they learn to share, to care and that the world does not revolve only around them. Kids don't tolerate unfair, selfish behavior and will quickly reprimand a playmate who does not follow the rules or behaves unacceptably. In an electronic era where kids suffer increasingly from health problems due to obesity, isolation and inactivity, nothing beats team sports to keep a healthy balance.
It is said that kids can be the cruelest of cruel to their peers because they are too young to understand how damaging and lasting the impact of their words/behavior can be. A victim of such cruelty often suffers lifelong emotional problems as a result of traumatic childhood experiences. Any playground games and activities should therefore be closely supervised by knowledgeable and trained teachers or coaches who can skillfully intervene to turn potential playground fights into a positive moral lesson.
Especially young kids under the age of 4 should never be allowed to play in groups without proper supervision. Team activities differ from school to school and place to place, but most kids' first experience of playground games include fun activities with basic equipment such as ropes, balls and bats to improve their balance, eye-hand coordination, as well as their muscle development. These fun games also lay the groundwork for more advanced team sports to follow in future years, by teaching them from start the proper techniques of how to catch, kick and throw a ball, hold a bat or racket or how to bowl. Experience builds confidence and a child with a healthy self-esteem is seldom shy or depressed.
The old adage - a healthy body, a healthy mind - is more applicable than ever in today's life where society puts tremendous pressure on kids to excel in various fields. Research indicates that physical activity might also increase a child's academic ability.
The social, physical and mental benefits of group activities and team sport are innumerable. Apart from keeping a child active, fit and healthy, it promotes values and valuable social skills such as good team spirit, responsibility, problem solving, patience and perseverance. They learn there is no I in the word team and winning is not everything. When a team loses, a child learns how to overcome failure and how to cope with disappointments in life.
That silly little children's games may look like mere child's play, but it is the best educational tool in the world. It teaches young children to play with kids they don't necessarily like, to share and to respect others. Best of all, it gives kids the opportunity to be less selfish and to learn that things do not always go their way. Maybe, just maybe, the world would be a better place if there were playground games for adults too.
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