The Availability Of Play Opportunities For Children During...

Purpose of the Study: To analyze the availability of play opportunities for children in early childhood programs in rural India. Rationale of the Study: The study is being conducted after reading various researches conducted in this field. India is a land of diversities and hence the availability of play and its opportunities are also varied. This study attempts to analyze this diversity at three different setups. Play enhances a child’s development significantly. It serves as a foundation for many aspects, for e.g. peer relationships, group work, problem solving skills, critical thinking, etc. Research Questions of the Study: The following are the questions which will be addressed in this research- 1.Why is outdoor and indoor play†¦show more content†¦(UNESCO) 3.Play: According to Webster s Desk Dictionary of the English Language, the word play has 34 different meanings. In terms of young children and play, the following definitions from Webster s are found to be applicable as well as useful: light, brisk, or changing movement (e.g., to pretend you re a butterfly)to act or imitate the part of a person or character (e.g., to play house) to employ a piece of equipment (e.g., to play blocks) exercise or activity for amusement or recreation (e.g., to play tag) fun or jest, as opposed to seriousness (e.g., to play peek-a-boo or sing a silly song) the action of a game (e.g., to play duck-duck-goose) a recreational activity; spontaneous activities of children 4.Cognitive Development: This is defined as the change or stability in mental abilities, such as reasoning; thinking, memory, creativity, problem solving skills, etc. 5.Socio-Emotional Development: This is defined as the change or stability in emotions, personality and social relationships. (Papalia, 2004) 6.Physical Development: (a) Gross-motor Development- This is defined as the usage of large muscles in our body for activities such as kicking, walking, jumping, hoping, skipping, standing, etc. It comprises of using muscles from our hands and feet and their synchronization. (b) Fine-motor Development- This is defined as the ability or usage of small muscles i.e. fingers for activities such as pinching, folding, holding, writing, etc. It involves synchronization of