Fun times: The importance of play cannot be underestimated
ForAfrika’s Western Cape team joined a fun-filled event celebrating a child’s right to play
World Play Day, sponsored by the International Toy Library Association (ITLA), is held on 28 May each year.
The importance to a young child of simply playing cannot be underestimated. In the words of World Play Day founder Dr Freda Kim: “The reason for promoting a World Play Day is to emphasise the importance of play in all our lives and particularly in the lives of our children. Children learn to talk through play, they learn to make friends through play, they get exercise through play, they also acquire the basic skills for formal education such as concentration, imagination, self-expression and the retention of useful facts.”
Dr Kim has also explained how important playing is for children in disaster or war zones as it helps them to work through trauma. Many of the children in our informal settlements or poverty-stricken townships experience trauma every day, whether from neglect, abuse, fear of crime or lack of nutritious food.
The needs in our communities
“I see the need in communities to just reach out to our children… to play more, to hear their stories. Children in communities have limited resources; they play with what they can get, either in the house or in the garbage bin outside the streets where they live.
“The community – more so the women than men – are aware of our children and their needs, but they don’t see the value in playing. Children don’t smile. They smile when there is a camera, but we don’t see joy. We want to see joy!” said Adel Terblanche, ForAfrika’s Community Development Officer in the Western Cape.
Adel and her team members – Ricky van Wyk and Thabile Raba – were invited to a World Play Day event by our long-time partner Sikhula Sonke at Mandela Park Stadium in Khayelitsha.
“This day the community comes together. We play. The parents, mothers, fathers – we all play! People need to see our children and why we want them to play,” said Sikhula Sonke’s Mdebuka Mtwazi as he opened the event.
At least 500 children attended and were treated to a fun-filled route of different “play stations”. Schools had a chance to stop at each of the stations and try out the activities offered. These included hula-hooping, balls, bicycle scooters, reading activities, face painting, blocks, coloring and a fantasy corner where the children enjoyed dressing up and using their imaginations.
Partnership with Sikhula Sonke
ForAfrika has been working with Sikhula Sonke, which means “we grow together” in isiXhosa, since 2016. We are feeding 450 children every day who, for various reasons, cannot attend an Early Childhood Development centre in Khayelitsha.
“Our involvement is the nutritional aspect of developing the children holistically. SiSo has field monitors who offer some educational skills development on a daily basis. The monitors also make sure that the children get their nutritious porridge daily,” says Adel.
