Playtime Guidance Special Needs

Posted by Lynn Moore Aug 4, 2007

Certainly every household is different and every child is unique. This is true of the child’s individual personality, strengths, and weaknesses as well as his specific needs because of the disability. Nonetheless, parents and caregivers must make a choice about playtime. Here are some things to consider. After you have read my thoughts, I encourage you to vote in our poll and jump in on the discussion.

• Time to Relax One way to think of playtime is that it is the child’s time to relax – no therapies, no lessons, no encouragement to try things that are new, difficult, and perhaps uncomfortable. We are in a busy society, and we know that children with special needs often maintain a schedule that can challenge the pace of most business professionals.
• Time to Try New Things A second way to approach playtime is that it is a time for new experiences. While these may not be lessons per se, these experiences should build the background knowledge of the child. New vocabulary will come with the experiences, and undoubtedly there will be opportunity to practice skills learned in school.
• Another Way to Learn A third way to consider playtime is to see it as an opportunity to mesh fun and systematic learning. In other words, we won’t be planning a trip to the zoo because it is fun and our child might learn some new things. We will plan a trip to the zoo because our child just finished a unit on zoo animals in school and we must practice zoo words.

Naturally I am playing the devil’s advocate here. There is a natural blend that is important. What are your thoughts? ~ Lynn