By KOPANO MONAHENG
A lot of parents complain about their children coming home dirty everytime they went out to play.
Little do they know that lack of physical activity could actually result in serious health problems.
Nomawethu Ngadlela, marketing manager at SASKO, said a lack of physical activity in children impacts their growth, muscles and bones.
She said children needed to partake in physical activities like sport in order to grow well.
Through their Siyasizana campaign focused on child development and well-being, they aim to positively impact 5 million children by 2030.
Based on the findings from 2022 Lego research, the following types of play are critical in ensuring that kids grow well and healthy.
Physical play helps in developing both their fine motor skills and gross motor skills. To do this, children needed to regularly practice a range of physical movements, both big and like running or hopscotch.
Social play is crucial for children’s development, fostering important skills like cooperation, communication, empathy, and problem-solving.
Some examples of social play activities for children includes outdoor activities like tag, hide-and-seek, or treasure hunts. These games help children understand cooperation and teamwork and allow them to practice negotiation skills and learn about sharing space and resources.
While constructive play encourages creativity, problem-solving skills, and social interaction. These are some of the examples that parents and teachers can use as constructive play activities for children:
Building Blocks: Provide children with different types of building blocks like LEGO, wooden blocks, or magnetic tiles. Encourage them to build structures, vehicles, or anything else they can imagine.
Puzzle Time: Introduce age-appropriate puzzles to children. From simple wooden puzzles to complex jigsaw puzzles, children can improve their problem-solving abilities while having fun.
Game with rules Play. Games with rules are not only entertaining for children but also help them develop important skills like following instructions, teamwork, and problem-solving.
Games like Monopoly and Chess are important.
Monopoly teaches kids a lot about money, including Budgeting: In a Monopoly, players have to budget their money to purchase properties, pay rent, and manage their finances. This teaches kids the importance of budgeting and managing their money wisely.
Chess helps children develop cognitive skills as well as social skills.
“Our plan is to make sure that by 2030 we have positively touched the lives of more than 5 million ECD and Primary school going children through better quality play and allowing these children to express themselves through positive play.”
For more info visit their website http://www.sasko.co.za
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