In today's society, we live in a culture of success – there is a tendency to increasingly emphasize success from a very early age. There is often a desire and pressure for children to be “precocious”, showing great achievements and “skipping stages”. In this context, playing tends to be undervalued as a distraction, a small insignificance or even a waste of time. However, playful activity is fundamental to development and performs a multitude of essential functions. For example, through play and symbolic play, children express and integrate their emotions and conflicts, which is a fundamental activity for emotional development and mental health. It is also through play that children develop their imagination, creativity and organize events in time. Playing and fantasizing create different scenarios, develop the ability to anticipate and plan and, consequently, their thinking and reasoning.
Playing continues to be important throughout life – recreational activities such as dancing or engaging in a creative activity for the pure pleasure of it are examples of things necessary for a healthy and meaningful life. Playing is a very serious thing! As serious as life.
A child who does not play is an adult who does not think, who reproduces previously defined mental schemes and scripts, but does not create new thoughts. There is only thought, creation and life where there is dreaming, fun and play. As Einstein said – “Creativity is intelligence having fun. Play for your health!”
Daniel Figueiredo, Psicólogo, Psicoterapeuta, membro da SPPC
