Why Playing with Clay is Great for Your Child’s Development

Why Playing with Clay is Great for Your Child’s Development? asked?

The minds of children are impressionable. They begin taking in information from quiet a young age and that is what makes it important that children are taught early on, with great care. They learn a great deal from observing the environment and the people closest to them.

There are a number of benefits of learning art for children. Some of them include good memory skills along with emotional and mental development through self expression. Clay modeling is a fun way to create something and play ‘make believe’ for kids.

Activity with Clay
Activity of urdu Letter with clay ط

Here are six reasons children should play with clay

Clay play is a multi-sensory hobby: touch, sight, smell—and even sound.  Is it slimy or dry?  What does it sound like when you squeeze it?  Children can strengthen sensory skills as they learn to manipulate the material into different objects and shapes.  

Play with clay

Most adults caring for children have experienced and offered playing with play dough and modeling materials, often called “clay.” But have you ever tried using natural or real clay? Because clay comes from the earth, it’s a natural material. Since children love natural materials (think rocks, sand, water, mud, pinecones, and sticks) clay will probably be a hit, too. Natural materials are a springboard to creative thinking and a connection to nature and the arts (along with many developmental skills!).

Children and clay

Introducing clay to young children provides multiple outlets for their individual ideas, feelings, and developmental skills. For young children, clay holds no preconceived ideas as to what it is or how it is supposed to be used. Children will show many parts of themselves through clay experiences:

  • Approaches and reactions to a new material (imagination, steps of involvement, temperament, feelings)
  • Initiative, curiosity, and problem solving
  • Technique and manipulation (what they do and what skills they use)
  • Physical development (small and large motor skills)
  • Ideas in representational forms (connecting ideas to meaning, symbolic demonstrations)
  • Expression and communication (language, literacy, and social and emotional skills)
  • Interactions and progressions over time (with other people, other materials)