The Importance of Messy Play for Children!

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You might have seen the terms ‘messy play' or ‘sensory play' when you search online. Both can be used interchangeably and mean the same thing.

So what exactly is messy play and sensory play? In short, it is an activity that engages a child's senses including eyes, ears, nose, mouth, touch, balance, or movement.

According to Piaget's theory of development, children from the age of zero to eight are in two different stages of development: the sensorimotor stage from ages zero to two and the preoperational state from age two to around seven or eight.

In both of these stages, play through experimenting and exploring their environment is critical for development.

The sensorimotor stage from birth to two is all about using the senses to explore this brand new world. How things feel, taste, sound, look like, and how your baby moves in order to explore these things aids in their cognitive learning. They quickly learn how much strength they need to pick up a block or if something feels soft or hard.

As a child grows and enters school, this learning through play and exploring is still a vital part of their cognitive development. They build on the sensory experiences they had as a baby and toddler to produce symbols and language and other academic skills.

It is vital as educators, parents, and therapists working with children in these early stages and ages that we don't forget to just let them play.

Playing and exploring IS learning for a child. Playing is their job! 

The Importance of Messy Play

There are some specific skills that messy play can help facilitate.

PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

You may have guessed already, but using all eight senses to explore and play leads to many great physical development skills.

Using the hands and fingers promotes fine motor development such as finger dexterity, hand strength and shoulder strength. These skills are the building blocks for future handwriting. Using the senses of balance and body awareness enhance gross motor skills.

Messy play also helps children to understand how things feel, such as textures and temperatures. They also learn about body awareness and personal boundaries or spacial awareness.

Children can develop many great pre-writing skills with messy play through pouring, scooping, and grasping while perfecting eye-hand coordination skills.

For a child who struggles with textures, especially food, messy play can be a great way to encourage sensory exploration in a fun and less stressful way than at the dinner table.

LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT

Messy play can lead to amazing discussions with your child. Does it feel hot, cold, soft, scratchy, hard, smooth? Is it large or small?

It is also a great way for children to engage in pretend play and using symbolic language. Shaving cream can become an ocean, play dough is suddenly a huge mountain or a forest. Children also tend to talk more, using more language with pretend play. It gives them a chance to practice their vocabulary and use more complex language such as descriptive adjectives and verbs.

COGNITIVE SKILLS 

Messy play is really the beginning of early STEM learning. Children use hands-on play and experiments to learn about the different environments and items they are exposed to.  Math skills can include things like size, conservation, timing, matching, classifying and sorting. Science skills can include things like cause and effect, gravity, problem-solving, and the beginnings of the scientific method.

SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL SKILLS

I have seen first hand the way messy play and sensory play can be used to help a child calm and focus on a task. My 3-year-old is especially fond of play dough and his focus during that activity always amazes me.

According to Russian psychologist, Lev Vygotsky, “a child’s greatest self-control occurs in play (1978, p.99).” He proposed that pretend play, in particular, could be a leading factor in the development of the child’s ability to self-regulate. And messy play is a great way to encourage this pretend play.

Messy play doesn't just benefit children under the age of eight. My friend Sharla tells the story of her teenage son who was having a rough day with his emotions. He was upset and angry and on the verge of a meltdown. My friend, who is also a huge advocate of sensory play, had a bowl of cloud dough sitting out. He mindlessly put one hand in and began to squeeze and knead and squish and shape.

Slowly, his anger melted away. He sat there for over an hour and a half playing in that cloud dough and began to talk. That led to another batch of another type of cloud dough (to compare the textures) that he engaged in helping to make. Which led to some more talking, smiles, and then even some laughter.

Messy play is also a great way to encourage children to work together and cooperate in group play or one-on-one play. They learn about personal boundaries, understanding someone else's ideas and views, and they have the opportunity to express their own.

CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT

There is no one way or right way to messy play. It leaves the child in control of the outcome and they have the freedom to explore and test different theories in order to get the desired response. This can boost their self-confidence and also encourage them to find new ways to do things by using their imagination and creativity.

SENSORY INPUT

The most obvious benefit of messy play is added sensory input. As we already established, children learn through experiences and hands-on activities. Messy is one of the best ways to do this and also introduce your child to different types of sensory input.

If you are working with a child who has sensory challenges, don't overwhelm them with too many different kinds of input. This can lead to a sensory meltdown if you aren't careful. Follow their lead and don't push them into something they aren't comfortable with.