This weekend I took my two boys to watch Toy Story 5. Like so many Toy Story films before it, I expected to laugh, maybe shed a tear, and leave feeling nostalgic. What I didn’t expect was one line, said by the toys, to stay with me long after the credits rolled.
“The devices are stealing our time.”
As a parent, that one sentence hit me hard because if I’m honest, I see it in my own home. When my boys have a choice, the screens often win. Tablets, games and devices are usually the first thing they reach for. It’s only when their screen time limit is up that the toys come back out, that’s when something wonderful happens. Suddenly they’re building worlds, creating stories, negotiating rules, solving problems, laughing together and becoming completely immersed in their own imagination. It reminds me every single time why play matters.
Running Pop Up Play Village has given me the privilege of visiting schools, nurseries and early years settings across Cheshire, Wrexham, Shropshire and beyond. There is one comment I hear again and again from teachers “Some of our children just don’t know how to play anymore.” Every time I hear those words, they stop me in my tracks. Play isn’t something children should have to be taught. It should come naturally. Yet more and more educators are noticing children arriving at school who struggle to initiate imaginative play, take turns, create their own ideas or sustain play without adult direction. Of course, there are many reasons for this and every child is different. But many teachers tell me they are seeing a noticeable change compared with previous generations. That should concern all of us.
To an adult, role play can sometimes look like just playing but to a child, it’s serious work. When a child becomes a firefighter, a shopkeeper, a builder, a vet or a hairdresser, they aren’t simply pretending. They’re learning. They’re developing language as they negotiate with friends, they’re building confidence as they take on new roles, solving problems, practising maths while shopping, developing fine motor skills, learning empathy by caring for babies or patients and building resilience when things don’t go to plan.
Research consistently shows that play supports children’s cognitive, language, physical, social and emotional development. Through play, children learn to communicate, regulate emotions, think creatively, collaborate with others and make sense of the world around them. These are the foundations that support learning far beyond the Early Years. No app can replace that.
One of my favourite recent school visits wasn’t with nursery children, it was with Key Stage 2. Some adults assume older children have outgrown role play but they haven’t. The teachers were genuinely surprised by how quickly the children immersed themselves in the village. Within minutes they were collaborating, creating businesses, solving problems and inventing stories together. Children who might usually be reluctant to engage were smiling, communicating and working as a team. One Year 6 child summed it up perfectly “I felt like I was seven again.” That wasn’t a step backwards. It was permission to simply be a child.
Every school visit leaves me with stories I’ll never forget. I’ve been “arrested” countless times by enthusiastic police officers. I’ve seen a construction wheelbarrow transformed into a beautifully made bed for an injured patient from the hospital, complete with a pillow and blanket. I’ve watched children spend twenty minutes carefully organising supermarket shelves before proudly opening for customers. I’ve seen children who rarely speak become confident vets explaining exactly how to care for an injured dinosaur. Teachers often tell me afterwards that they’ve seen different sides of children, leaders emerge, friendships strengthen and quieter children find their voice. Those moments aren’t planned. They happen because play gives children the freedom to think, imagine and create.
This isn’t about declaring screens the enemy. Technology has an important place in children’s lives and can be a fantastic learning tool when used well but it shouldn’t replace opportunities to play. Children need time to get bored, invent and build, make mistakes, negotiate, imagine and to play. Perhaps that’s why that line from Toy Story stayed with me. The devices aren’t just competing with toys. They’re competing with imagination, conversation, creativity and the countless moments of learning that happen when children lose themselves in play.
Every time I set up Pop Up Play Village, my hope is simple, to create a space where children forget about screens for a while, where they become builders, doctors, firefighters, shopkeepers, vets, chefs, hairdressers, parents, explorers and inventors. A space where they laugh together, communicate, create memories and where they remember just how much fun play can be. Children don’t just deserve time to play, they need it and after hearing that line in the cinema, I think perhaps we all need to protect that time a little more.
Written by Kelly Broomhall, Franchise Owner of Pop Up Play Village in and around Chester, Wrexham, Whitchurch and Nantwich
