The Burnaby Early Childhood Development Table is hosting a family event on Saturday to encourage parents to play with their kids.
Play to Learn! will be similar to a fair, where children (from babies to five years old) and their families can visit various stations, each with a different activity.
"A lot of parents aren't aware of the actual benefit of play. I think it's always been seen as something you do for fun, not necessarily as something you need to develop in a healthy way," said Stefanie Poli, a program coordinator at Cameray Child and Family Services. "Play builds attachment with families, it helps with brain development and it helps them grow and thrive. We have the research now to back that up."
Poli said her agency is always trying to push the idea of unstructured play.
"It's not just about signing your kids up for sports. Those are great, but the real importance is allowing your child's imagination to grow by allowing them to play in a really unstructured way," she added. "One thing we do is we have the child doing a craft and the parent verbally supporting the child, rather than physically doing it for them."
Poli said early child development can be broken down into five categories - physical health and well-being, social competence, emotional maturity, communication skills and cognitive development. And whether you're taking out a box of crayons and scribbling with them, or assigning them household chores, it all helps.
Play to Learn! is being held at the Bonsor Recreation Complex, between 9:30 a.m. and noon. Snacks and refreshments will be provided. Admission to the drop-in event is free.
The ECD Table, which was established in 2003 via funding from the province, is a group of over 90 representatives from government and non-profit agencies.
