Understanding development and toys
Play is the mechanism by which chil- dren learn—how they experience their world, practice new skills, and internalize new ideas—and is therefore the essential “work of children” (Paley 2004). Through this continuous and expanding process, early skills give rise to new ones and new experiences are integrated with previ-
ous ones. Through play, children learn about the world and engage in activities
that encourage their cognitive, emotional, and social development (Elkind 2007).
For example, when a child bangs on a drum, she learns she can create a sound.
Through play, she learns the important concept of cause and effect