Child Rights: How play helps keep the body and mind healthy
Play has amazing health benefits for body, mind and emotional wellbeing – which is why kids across the world should be doing more of it. But just how much should you be playing each day?
READING LEVEL: GREEN
From backyard ball games to living room dance-offs, play powers your body and mind – but with all the sitting, screens and busy schedules today it can be easy to forget just how important it is to play.
This World Children’s Day, UNICEF Australia is reminding us all that every child needs to play. Play is not just a pastime, it’s a key part to a child’s physical and mental wellbeing.
PLAY IS GOOD FOR PHYSICAL HEALTH
According to UNICEF, just two hours outdoors each day can increase vigorous physical activity by nearly a third more than children who stay indoors.
“Spending time outdoors is one of the simplest, yet most powerful ways to support a child’s physical health,” said UNICEF Australia head of policy and advocacy* Katie Maskiell.
“When they’re outside, they have the room to move more, they breathe in fresh air, get sunlight and strengthen their bodies in ways that just can’t be matched by staying inside.”
Jumping, running, climbing and balancing can help develop motor skills*, co-ordination and endurance*, which can lead to better heart health, stronger muscles and bones, and less risk of unhealthy weight gain. Physical play also improves sleep quality and boosts energy overall.
WHAT’S THE RECOMMENDED AMOUNT OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY?
Children under five should be getting at least three hours of physical activity during the day, in different forms and intensity.
Children aged five to 17 should be doing at least one hour of moderate to vigorous physical activity each day, such as running, cycling, swimming or playing sports.
Unfortunately, too many children fall short of the recommended amounts of outdoor play.
Around the world, children are spending less time outside than ever before.
This trend is particularly true for girls, children from racial or ethnic minority* backgrounds or children living in city areas without safe outdoor spaces.
As children grow older, busy schedules and school pressures often leave little time for unstructured fun.
PLAY IS GOOD FOR YOUR EMOTIONAL WELLBEING
Play isn’t just good for your physical health, it’s also essential for mental and emotional wellbeing.
Play allows you to explore your feelings, build resilience* and work on your social skills, like making new friends and keeping old ones.
“Through play, children make sense of their world,” Ms Maskiell said. “It helps them feel safe, loved and understood – and gives them a way to express emotions that they may not have the words for yet.”
“Children build up their confidence, learn how to navigate relationships and grow their bond to family, caregivers or friends.
“Even just a few moments of play each day can make any child feel stronger inside.”
FOUR WAYS PLAY IS GOOD FOR MENTAL HEALTH
• Play helps to strengthen bonds
Moments of fun and learning between children and their parents or caregivers can help them feel closer and more connected, becoming the foundation for the development of emotional and social skills.
• Play helps reduce stress levels
Dancing around the house, singing out loud and playing games are great ways to relieve stress. Moments of fun and laughter release endorphins* that help you feel happy and calm.
• Play helps process difficult emotions
Play helps children work through complex emotions like fear, pain or loss through imagination, like drawing or role-playing with toys to make sense of what happened.
• Play helps to build confidence
Solving tricky problems or building something creative through play helps children feel proud and capable – boosting their confidence and self-esteem.
SIMPLE WAYS TO HAVE FUN
Play doesn’t need expensive toys or big plans, it just needs a little imagination.
Having fun can be as simple as heading outside for an adventure, joining a game with friends or making up stories with everyday objects.
When play is led by the child and a sense of fun it supports every part of a child’s development, from confidence and creativity to emotional resilience and strong relationships.
PLAY ISN’T A LUXURY – IT’S A RIGHT
“Play keeps children’s bodies and minds healthy in more ways than one – and every child deserves that chance, to laugh, explore, grow and thrive,” Ms Maskiell said.
This World Children’s Day, UNICEF Australia is inviting every child to take part in A Minute of Loudness to celebrate their Right to Play and raise their voices for a world where every child can feel safe, supported and free to be themselves.
For more information about child rights, visit unicef.org.au/unicef-youth/what-are-child-rights
Tomorrow in Kids News, we’ll take a closer look at why play is even more important in times of stress, especially for children who are living through an emergency or crisis.
WATCH THE VIDEO
POLL
GLOSSARY
- advocacy: building public support for a particular cause
- motor skills: being able to control and move your muscles
- endurance: being able to do things for a long time without getting too tired
- ethnic minority: someone who is from another country or cultural background where there aren’t many other people from that same background and they aren’t the dominant culture
- resilience: being able to tough it out and bounce back when things get hard
- endorphins: chemicals naturally released in the body when you exercise, eat or do fun things that make you feel good
EXTRA READING
Day of Play: let the games begin
QUICK QUIZ
- How much physical activity should kids aged 5-17 get each day?
- How is play good for mental health?
- What are some physical benefits of playing outside?
- Why are kids spending less time outdoors?
- What is the main thing you need in order to play and have fun?
LISTEN TO THIS STORY
CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. Benefits of play
After reading this Kids News article, you can read all the benefits of simple play and why all ages need it.
We seem to have busier and more hectic schedules, and kids or teenagers may not get enough time to have some simple play time.
Look at your own weekly schedule; where could you fit in an hour a day to enjoy some of these wholesome activities?
Write out your weekly timetable, adding in some simple play and enjoy unstructured, non-screen time to reap the mental and physical benefits.
Time: allow 20 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, Health and Physical Education, Personal and Social, Critical and Creative Thinking
2. Extension
Describe or invent a simple piece of equipment for older kids and teenagers to enjoy outside to help them get the most of outside play, as often imaginary games go out the window at an older age.
What other activities could older kids and teenagers do to enjoy the benefits of play?
Time: allow 10 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, Health and Physical Education, Personal and Social, Critical and Creative Thinking
VCOP ACTIVITY
Exercise the body and the mind
Exercise is not only important for the body, but it’s a lot of fun as well. Let’s bring more exercise into classroom learning by creating a VCOP PE game.
You can add a VCOP challenge to pretty much any game, and it’s a great way to encourage the teacher to let the class play more games.
Here is an example to get you started, then you create one of your own.
VCOP dodgeball
The normal rules of dodgeball apply. Two teams throw soft balls at each other and if you get hit, you have to sit out. The team who knocks out all the players on the other team, wins.
VCOP challenge: when you get eliminated, collect a mini-whiteboard and a basic clause from the sidelines. Up-level the sentence (make it better) by adding VCOP. When you show the teacher your completed sentence, you can return to the game.
Play for a set amount of time and the team with the most players left on the court wins.
Support: use the “Up-Level It” card set – players have to complete one card from the set instead of completing all VCOP challenges.
What can you come up with?