Editing Learning (section)

=== Play ===
{{Main|Play (activity)}}
''Play'' generally describes behavior with no particular end in itself, but that improves performance in similar future situations. This is seen in a wide variety of vertebrates besides humans, but is mostly limited to [[mammal]]s and [[bird]]s. Cats are known to play with a ball of string when young, which gives them experience with catching prey. Besides inanimate objects, animals may play with other members of their own species or other animals, such as [[orca]]s playing with seals they have caught. Play involves a significant cost to animals, such as increased vulnerability to [[predator]]s and the risk of [[injury]] and possibly [[infection]]. It also consumes [[energy]], so there must be significant benefits associated with play for it to have evolved. Play is generally seen in younger animals, suggesting a link with learning. However, it may also have other benefits not associated directly with learning, for example improving [[physical fitness]].

Play, as it pertains to humans as a form of learning is central to a child's learning and development. Through play, children learn social skills such as sharing and collaboration. Children develop emotional skills such as learning to deal with the emotion of anger, through play activities. As a form of learning, play also facilitates the development of thinking and language skills in children.<ref name="Lillemyr, O.F. 2009">Lillemyr, O.F. (2009). Taking play seriously. Children and play in early childhood education: an exciting challenge. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.</ref>

There are five types of play:
# Sensorimotor play aka functional play, characterized by the repetition of an activity
# Roleplay occurs starting at the age of three
# Rule-based play where authoritative prescribed codes of conduct are primary
# Construction play involves experimentation and building
# Movement play aka physical play<ref name="Lillemyr, O.F. 2009"/>

These five types of play are often intersecting. All types of play generate thinking and [[problem-solving]] skills in children. Children learn to think creatively when they learn through play.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Whitebread | first1 = D. | last2 = Coltman | first2 = P. | last3 = Jameson | first3 = H. | last4 = Lander | first4 = R. | year = 2009 | title = Play, cognition and self-regulation: What exactly are children learning when they learn through play? | url =https://www.researchgate.net/publication/232442434 | journal = Educational and Child Psychology | volume = 26 | issue = 2| pages = 40–52 | doi = 10.53841/bpsecp.2009.26.2.40 | s2cid = 150255306 }}</ref> Specific activities involved in each type of play change over time as humans progress through the lifespan. Play as a form of learning, can occur solitarily, or involve interacting with others.