Unlock the Magic of Play – An Interactive and Empowering Workshop for Parents at Bridging the Gap

Play might seem to be an ordinary and day-to-day activity for every child, but many a times, this tool has been underutilised. Bridging the Gap launched an exclusive workshop with an enlightening exploration into the role of play in child development and its impact on effective parenting.

One Saturday morning, 27^th of July 2024, wonderful parents signed up for the workshop “Unlock the Magic of Play” and had an engaging session at Bridging the Gap – Buona Vista. The workshop was led by Bridging the Gap’s Principal Speech Therapist, Wong Suet Leng.

A New Perspective on Play

The workshop aimed to highlight the critical role that playtime plays in a child’s cognitive, emotional, and social development. Teacher Suet Leng, renowned for her expertise in speech and language therapy, guided attendees through a series of engaging sessions designed to empower parents with practical tools and strategies.

Workshop Highlights

The event was structured into several interactive sessions:

The Science Behind Play: Teacher Suet Leng opened with an insightful discussion on the developmental benefits of play. She explained how various types of play contribute to different aspects of a child’s growth. Parents were engaged in a role play segment also and had gotten the chance to be in play situations as how children would be.

Stages of Play: The next segment was focused on different stages of play and how a child play basically develops from unoccupied play to cooperative play. The parent attendees also had the chance to observe a play scenario and describe whether what stages of play are depicted.

Play Style as a Parent: Moving forward, Teacher Suet Leng tackled about different play styles as a parent. Every parent had a moment of reflection on what actually are their play styles as parents whenever they had play interactions with their child.

Simple Strategies: The workshop also covered practical advice on creating opportunities that encourages play. Teacher Suet Leng shared about effective strategies to establish play with a child – such as OWL (Observe, Wait, and Listen).

Interactive Live Dialogue with SLTs:During the final segment, the parents were grouped into three different groups and had a huddle time with Bridging the Gap’s Speech and Language Therapists. Each one had a time to share with their fellow parents, consult some matters to the SLTs, and exchange ideas to the whole group. At the end of the activity, few parents were able to share to everyone what play stage their child is currently at and what play stage are they looking forward to. They’ve shared what their play style as parents are and what they think they should be improving on within this area of concern. The parents were also given a chance to raise some questions to the speaker, Teacher Suet Leng, before the workshop ended.

Indeed, it was great to see parents coming together with one goal in mind. The workshop didn’t only unlock the magic of play, but also opened doors for parents to be more equipped on supporting every child’s growth and development. As the workshop demonstrated, play is not just a pastime but a powerful tool for nurturing and guiding children. With expert guidance and practical strategies, parents can unlock the full potential of play and in turn – unlock and maximise children’s potential too!