Building Empathy Through Play

Playing with your child isn’t just fun—it also helps them develop important social and emotional skills, particularly empathy. Through playful interactions, children naturally learn how to recognise, understand, and respond to emotions, preparing them to build stronger relationships throughout their lives.

Why Learning Through Play Matters

Whether you're hosting a pretend tea party, stacking blocks, or cuddling up to share stories, you're helping your child practise recognising and understanding emotions. Discussing feelings, such as happiness, sadness, or excitement, during playtime naturally teaches your child empathy and emotional awareness.

How Play Builds Empathy

When your child engages in imaginative or cooperative play, they're developing essential skills:

• Recognising emotions: Learning to identify feelings like happiness, sadness, anger, or excitement in themselves and others.

• Understanding perspectives: Gaining the ability to see things from another person's point of view.

The Long-term Benefits of Playful Interactions

Research confirms that regular, meaningful play helps children become more empathetic, improving their ability to share, cooperate, and build healthy friendships. The benefits go beyond social interactions—children who manage emotions effectively also often do better academically.

Practical Tips for Encouraging Empathy Through Play

• Talk About Feelings: During play, ask questions like, “How do you think the doll feels?” or “What could we do to make our friend feel better?”

• Use Storytelling: Reading together and discussing characters' emotions helps your child recognise and empathise with different emotional experiences.

Final Thoughts

Next time you sit down for a tea party or build towers together, remember—you’re doing more than just playing. You’re laying the foundation for your child's future success, both socially and emotionally.