Discuss the view that play is the work of childhood.

Childrens playing is viewed as a distinct feature of childhood and is something that all children from all over the world have in common. (The Open University, Book 3 Chapter 1 p.4)

This essay will look how children play and what skills and learning they gain from it. It will look at how adults and professionals have interpreted methods of play and how significant play is to childrens development and learning. It will analyse different types of play and attempt to establish whether play is indeed the work of childhood. It will then look a distinct area of childs play which is role playing, giving a clear example of how imitating adult roles gives children the ability to make sense of the world around them and prepare themselves to be an active member of the society they live in. It will look at a unique childhood game in a Brazilian community and attempt to analyse the meanin…(short extract)