What stage of play is a child in at 2-3 years?
When people think of play they often think of toddlers or young children, but you can start playing as soon as your baby is born. Play changes as your child develops and over time children should become more comfortable playing with others.
These are the stage of play your child is currently in:
Spectator/Onlooker Behavior (2 Years): When a child watches and observes other children playing but will not play with them.
Parallel Play (2+ Years): When a child plays alongside or near to others but does not play with them.
They are past these stages:
Unoccupied Play (Birth-3 Months): When a baby is making a lot of movements with their arms, legs, hands, feet, etc. They are learning about and discovering how their body moves.
Solitary Play (Birth-2 Years): When a child plays alone and are not interested in playing with others quite yet.
The stages of play to come are:
Associate Play (3-4 Years): When a child starts to interact with others during play, but there is not a large amount of cooperation required, e.g. kids playing on the playground but doing different things like climbing, swinging, etc.
Cooperative Play (4+ years): When a child plays with others and has interest in both the activity and other children involved in playing.
