Active Play INC
Definition:
The proportion of children and youth engaged in daily unstructured, unorganized active play for several hours per day.
The grade of incomplete (INC) indicates that there was insufficient information available to assess this indicator.
Active play refers to unstructured, unorganized play which takes place either indoors or outdoors. For example, playing at a park without formal structure would be considered a form of active play. At this time, there are no credible data sources reporting the proportion of children and youth who engage in active play in India, hence a grade could not be assigned.
Why is active play important among children?
Active play is an important contributor to overall physical activity, especially among young children. Many children who do not participate in organized sports or structured activities, particularly infants and preschool-aged children, may engage in active play as their primary form of activity. Research also suggests that children accumulate up to 50% more moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity during unstructured play than they do during organized physical activities.
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For many young children, active play may be the primary form of physical activity accumulation. Unlike structured activities, active play encourages creativity, independence and social behaviour; and also improves conflict resolution, problem solving, and motor skills – aspects that are important to children’s social, emotional, and cognitive development.