Background on Play
This website was designed to provide an overview of normative infant development for parents, and to provide activities and toys that can help facilitate that development. The infant and toddler development discussed in this webpage includes ages 0-24 months. Play is important during this time because the mind and body is developing at an impressive rate, and infants have the quality of being able to change rapidly in response to experience. This plasticity makes play especially beneficial to infants, and provides the opportunity to get back on track and recover should a child or infant experience certain setbacks. Play provides an opportunity to practice motor skills, which benefit both normal and non normal infants. Activities that both intentionally and coincidentally promote motor skills assist in physical development, like playing with an infant's legs. Play can help model acceptable social behaviors and interactions. Play also affords structured and unstructured ways for infants to explore, test, and learn about their environment, which is key to cognitive development. It is clear that play activities and play with toys are important in physical, cognitive, and social development.