About Heather Camlot
A freelance writer, crafts junkie and mom of two, Heather Camlot is constantly on the lookout for that elusive work-life balance she hears so much about. Read about Heather's never ending search for five minutes to herself while trying to meet deadlines, make the school bus and raise two fantastic children.
I’ve mentioned the Ikea Playreport before, but I wanted to come back to it because I think the findings are quite important and revealing.
- 45 percent of parents feel they don’t have enough time to play with their children
- 26 percent feel they are too stressed to enjoy playing with their children
- 45 percent think play is best when it is educational (editor’s note: all play is educational!)
- 27 percent think play should always have a purpose (editor’s note: the purpose should be to have fun)
So what is play exactly? According to the Encarta World English Dictionary, play is defined as “To take part in an enjoyable activity, especially a game, simply for the sake of amusement. To do something for fun, not in earnest.”
Play is great for improving sociability, practicing skills, developing cognitive abilities and learning basic skills like reading and writing. It can take the form of building, reading, role playing, exercising, cooking, creating, thinking and dressing up. It doesn’t have to be scheduled or organized – it just has to happen. And kids want it to happen with their parents. In fact, 38 percent of kids want their parents to play with them more.
Find something that pleases all of you – be it kicking a soccer ball, baking cookies, or doing arts and crafts. Because one day, before we know it, kids aren’t going to want to play with us anymore and we’ll have lost out on an incredibly important time in our children’s development – and life.
Need some help learning to play? Check out Ikea’s new Lekar application for the iPhone and iPod Touch.
