Is there a Relationship between Free Play and Creativity?

As the mother of two, I have seen that many of my children's peers are active in several activities both after school and on the weekends. I began wondering when these children get to "play". By play I mean free, unstructured activities without adult involvement. I then began wondering what the effects of free play were, whether it was a benefit or hindrance to development.

I am not a researcher, sociologist, psychologist or health care worker, so my statements here are based on my personal experience and research I have come across, interpreted on my own, and cited here.

When I was a child, I spent a lot of time in what I would now call "free play".  This included undirected play activities both indoors and outdoors.  Indoor activities include playing with dolls and acting through them, reading, crafts, and other activities.  Outdoor activities included exploration, sand play, tree climbing, and imaginative play (pretending I was X).  None of these activities involved adults.  I was never involved in more than one structured activity at a time, such as a sport or class, until I got to high school.

So where did this get me?  I finished high school in the top 5% of my class, I received a degree in engineering, I worked for over a decade as an engineer, and I started my own business.  I also have several creative and analytical hobbies.

I now have two children, and I allow them free play as much as possible.  Both children have shown early academic strengths.  Both children could read and write before the age of 4.  One child spends time writing and drawing books, and the other has shown interest in music.  Both enjoy building and construction toys.  Neither watches commercial television, but they do watch recorded shows or shows on DVD so we can avoid commercials.  One child plays a seasonal sport, and the other child may start next year.

I do make myself available for feedback during their play.  For example, one child may ask me how to spell a word, or the other may ask me to help them put something together. I fulfill their request and then return to my previous activity.  I may make observations or suggestions based on what they're doing, but I allow them to make their own play decisions.

Based on my personal experience and the experience of my children, I feel that including a significant amount of free play in their life has allowed them to experiment with their interests, and to allow them to learn to make independent decisions.

Peter Grey, a research professor of psychology at Boston College, notes five characteristics of free play:

1. "Play is self-chosen and self-directed;
   
2. Play is activity in which means are more valued than ends;
3. Play has structure, or rules, which are not dictated by physical necessity but emanate from the minds of the players;
4. Play is imaginative, non-literal, mentally removed in some way from “real” or “serious” life; and
5. Play involves an active, alert, but non-stressed frame of mind."

According to a study published in 2006 in the journal Pediatrics, the American Academy of Pediatrics stated that, "free and unstructured play is healthy and - in fact - essential for helping children reach important social, emotional, and cognitive developmental milestones as well as helping them manage stress and become resilient."

In the February 2009 issue of Scientific American, author Melinda Wenner states that "Imaginative and rambunctious “free play,” as opposed to games or structured activities, is the most essential type. Kids and animals that do not play when they are young may grow into anxious, socially maladjusted adults."

A study published in 2005 in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine revealed that children’s free-play time dropped by a quarter between 1981 and 1997.

Psychiatrist Stuart Brown has interviewed over 6,000 people about their childhoods over the last 40 years. His data, "suggest that a lack of opportunities for unstructured, imaginative play can keep children from growing into happy, well-adjusted adults."