Sport NZ campaign spotlights importance of play

Play Week Aotearoa 2024 runs from 26th October to 1st November with a Sport NZ Campaign introducing the ‘Play Lab’ where children will show the importance of play and how it helps build physical, social and organisational skills.

These skills help children build the confidence and knowledge to ensure they are active throughout their lives.

Play is the foundation for an active life and one of the earliest physical experiences children have. While play is fun, there is a serious and beneficial side to ensuring children are encouraged and given enriching opportunities to play.

One of the benefits of play  is the development of fundamental movement skills such as stability, and locomotor skills, which involve moving the body to get from one place to another.

Sport NZ Play Manager Scott Mackenzie advises “Play is a child’s earliest physical experience, and it helps develop resilience, creativity, emotional connections, and an understanding of their environment.

“Kids who play develop skills that help them stay active for life.”

Research from the University of Auckland shows that children growing up in the 21st Century in Aotearoa need to be able to think critically, be creative and innovative, and have well developed social skills, adaptability and resilience to thrive in the face of challenges such as pandemics, resource depletion and growing social inequities. The foundations for these skills are laid during a child’s early years.

Mackenzie adds “Children learn and develop skills when they have fun in play, whether it’s interacting with others or playing alone. The best play is unstructured and spontaneous. It can happen anywhere, with no particular outcome.

“Play allows children to develop a sense of self, a sense of belonging, and a sense of community. If they experience positive and rewarding play experiences during childhood, they are more likely to remain physically active as they grow up.”

Play is at the heart of Sport NZ’s strategy, where they are working with a play workforce across the motu to ensure all tamariki have quality opportunities to be active and healthy, to reach their goals and achieve their full potential.

Find out more about Play Week Aotearoa 2024 

Access Research paper from  University of Auckland  ‘Ahead of the Game: Why play is the key to children’s future success’

Images. Credit: Sport NZ; Video: Sport NZ Play Week Campaign