The Magic of Dirt: 10 Benefits of Mud Play

_Elsa_

“Hey Tiffi, what are you doing?” says Red Rabbit. “I was really upset with that mother yelling at her kid today. How could she be so mean and not let her son enjoy his play time? I am googling for articles on being clean vs getting dirty. So far all that I have read say that mud playing is beneficial towards a child’s growth.  Even scientists say that it’s good for children to play in the dirt. Hey, how about the next time that it rains we get together to play in the mud.”

Tiffi loves that idea! Red Rabbit goes back to his googling.

‘Do you remember the squishy feeling of wet mud between your fingertips, making mud pies and spending hours covered head to toe in the dirt? These memories help inform how you teach and parent.

Dirt and Mud Play are often overlooked as essential teaching tools for young children. We need to spread the word. Getting dirty and playing in Mud has enormous benefits in all areas of child development!

Here are 10 excuses to let the kids play in the mud today!

1. Encourages Creativity (Emotional Development) - Mud Art: This offers endless opportunities for creative expression. Think mud sculptures, mud pictures/designs, and mud body painting.

2. Builds Problem Solving-Skills (Cognitive Development) - Cooperative Play: Think of all the negotiating, communicating and sharing that goes on in a kitchen. Children can also work alone in the Mud Kitchen and problem solve.

3. Uses Fine and Gross Motor Skills (Physical Development) - Kitchen Jobs: Think of the variety of tasks the Mud Kitchen offers children. Weighing, measuring and adding small loose parts to a Mud Pie with utensils all require fine motor skills.

Mixing mud flour in a large saucepan, transporting heavy buckets and reaching up high for a hanging pot all require gross motor skills.

4. Practice Listening and Taking Turns (Social Development) - Role Play: Think how children act out whatever they are learning. Mud Play is a sensory experience. Therefore, provides an abundance of things for children to talk about. The Mud Kitchen offers a platform for them to practice many of these life skills.

5. Plays a Role in Our Mood. Mud Makes us Happier! (Emotional Development) - Scientific Studies: Think how happy children are after playing in the Dirt. The magic is in the Dirt. Recent scientific studies have connected the happy, relaxed and calm moods after Mud Play to the dirt that contains microscopic bacteria called Mycobacterium Vaccae. This bacteria increases the serotonin in our brains. Now think about children who are not playing in the Mud. Do you see a difference?’ (Source)

Red Rabbit decides that they definitely have to play in the mud. Why didn’t they ever think of doing this before?

Let’s continue - Benefits of mud play continued ….

Start at the beginning – Let’s play in the mud!