2024 marks first ever International Day of Play

By Wayne CampbellSpecial to the AFRO“Play is fundamentally important for learning 21st century skills, such as problem solving, collaboration, and creativity.”– American Academy of Pediatrics.Many children no longer play, and this is true for various reasons. In fact, many of us as adults, especially those of Afro-Caribbean ancestry, tend to undervalue the impact and significance of play concerning our children. Oftentimes, we tell our children to go and “take up their books.” However, playtime is important.& The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child has enshrined play as a fundamental right of every child. Play creates powerful learning opportunities across all areas of development: intellectual, social, emotional and physical. (Photo by Sylvia Szekely on Unsplash)Global obesity has become a public health concern and this is rather concerning. In fact, in some jurisdictions, physical education is not done and students go through an entire academic year without any structured playtime.The United Nations indicates that over 390 million children and adolescents ages 5-19 years were overweight in 2022. The prevalence of overweight (including obese) children and adolescents ages 5-19 has risen dramatically from just 8 percent in 1990 to 20 percent in 2022. The rise has occurred similarly among both...