DOI: 10.36347/sjahss.2015.v03i09.017

Pages: 1489-1492

Play is central to the development of a child. Different views have been expressed on how play contributes to intellectual development, physical development, emotional development and personality development among other domains of human development. The paper focuses on the conceptual framework of the term play. Different forms of play are covered. These include free play, spontaneous play, make-belief play, creative play, physical play and manipulative play. These are examined to provide a theoretical framework for the concept play, and as a way of giving the reader an appreciation of the role of play in education. Apart from developing other human domains, play contributes to cognitive development. A number of theories have been advanced to explain cognitive development in children. To demonstrate the importance of play in education the paper discusses Piaget’s theory of cognitive development in relation to play. The paper focuses mainly on Piaget’s first three stages of cognitive development and how play can contribute positively to development. The theory is examined according to its contribution to learning in relation to the role of the teacher. The paper concludes that play stimulates a child’s social, physical, emotional and cognitive development and that the school has to promote the use of play in teaching all subjects.