PANDEMIC PARENTING
Finding ways to play while at home
Whitney Blaisdell wants to help families maintain the magic of play.
Play is a crucial part of a child’s development, but the COVID -19 pandemic has created challenges for parents to get their kids involved in the essential activity.
“Play is incredibly important for the development of a human being and for our brain, from infancy all the way well into adulthood,” said Blaisdell during a phone interview on Wednesday.
Blaisdell, a graduate student in the University of Regina’s Faculty of Education, is working on a new research project in partnership with the Early Learning Centre (ELC) to help it find ways to support families in an era of social distancing. Blaisdell is the founder of Project Play YQR, which documents play spaces in the city in an effort to make them more accessible to families.
Due to the pandemic, many of these public spaces have been closed. The ELC’S locations, which provide drop-in play spaces and programming for families, have also been closed. The ELC still wants to support families though, and will rely on Blaisdell’s research to help them figure out how.
“We think by engaging them through this research it’ll help us really find a way to creatively support them and continue to provide resources and those kinds of things,” said Monica Totton, Early Years Family Resource Centre co-ordinator for the ELC.
Blaisdell’s research will have a focus on how the ELC can support families at home. She said the biggest thing families have lost during the pandemic is the ability to visit places that are specifically reserved for play. Families are now in a challenging situation of balancing work, play and parenting all inside their own home with no outside support.
Blaisdell’s advice to parents is to first focus on their own mental health. If they are stressed, it can have an effect on their child’s play or their ability to engage in play with them. Blaisdell also recommended parents provide their kids with time for unstructured play. This doesn’t involve planning an activity or having children watch TV. She referred to it as “amuse yourself parenting.”
“That’s when they’ll have to come up with their own ideas, and that’s really the magic of play,” said Blaisdell.
She can see the play challenge affecting every type of family at the moment, especially those who are experiencing financial stress. With no extracurricular activities or other kids to socialize with, families are losing their “play network.”
Blaisdell said the effects of not having a playful childhood are “immense.” A lack of the activity can have an impact on imagination, problem solving ability and socializing.
Play isn’t just essential for children either. Blaisdell’s research looks specifically at children who are zero to nine years old, but the act of play isn’t just for kids. She’s also looking at documenting play spaces for adults, including basketball courts, baseball diamonds and soccer fields.
“It’s important that we realize that play is for everyone, and that it’s important to be playful for throughout your entire life,” said Blaisdell.
■ More information about Project Play YQR, including ideas for play during the pandemic can be found at www.playyqr.ca. mmelnychuk@postmedia.com