Unintentional Injuries
Play is the main activity of children’s everyday life in all cultures. It provides children with opportunities for learning about the world around them, thus making it significant to children’s healthy growth and development (Brussoni, Olsen, Pike, & Sleet, 2012). However, because the rapid physical growth, strength, motor skills and greater independence of children during their preschool year; they become difficult to supervise and to carry out of danger which places them into the risk of unintentional injury when playing (Hoffnung, et al., 2010). Play is the main activity of children’s everyday life in all cultures. It provides children with opportunities for learning about the world around them, thus making it significant to children’s healthy growth and development (Brussoni, Olsen, Pike, & Sleet, 2012). However, because the rapid physical growth, strength, motor skills and greater independence of children during their preschool year; they become difficult to supervise and to carry out of danger which places them into the risk of unintentional injury when playing (Hoffnung, et al., 2010).
As children want to constantly explore thrilling and exciting new things for their development, their physical activity plays whether outdoor or indoor (e.g., exercise play, rough-and-tumble play); object play (toys) and pretend play (socio-dramatic) becomes more involved with heights, speed, hazardous equipments or near dangerous places that can highly result to unintentional injury (Brussoni, et al., 2012). Children then face the risk of making mistakes resulting to bumps, bruises or even a broken bone. That is also why boys are more likely to sustain unintentional injury than girls because of their greater risk-taking behaviour and more active approaches to play (Hoffnung, et al., 2010).
Children’s playtime activity are ending in nearly three-quarters of a million children aged 0-15 years of hospital admission each year from having been injured inside their homes
As children want to constantly explore thrilling and exciting new things for their development, their physical activity plays whether outdoor or indoor (e.g., exercise play, rough-and-tumble play); object play (toys) and pretend play (socio-dramatic) becomes more involved with heights, speed, hazardous equipments or near dangerous places that can highly result to unintentional injury (Brussoni, et al., 2012). Children then face the risk of making mistakes resulting to bumps, bruises or even a broken bone. That is also why boys are more likely to sustain unintentional injury than girls because of their greater risk-taking behaviour and more active approaches to play (Hoffnung, et al., 2010).
Children’s playtime activity are ending in nearly three-quarters of a million children aged 0-15 years of hospital admission each year from having been injured inside their homes
References: Brussoni, M., Olsen, L. L., Pike, I., & Sleet, D. A. (2012). Risky play and children 's safety: Balancing priorities for optimal child development. International Journal of Environmental Research, 9, 3134-3148. Hoffnung, M., Hoffnung, R. J., Seifert, K. L., Smith, R. B., Hine, A., Ward, L., et al. (2010). Lifespan Development. John Wiley & Sons. Smithson, J., Garside, R., & Pearson, M. (2011). Barriers to, and facilitators of, the prevention of unintentional injury in children in the home: A systematic review and synthesis of qualitative research. Injury Prevention: Journal of the International Society for Child and Adolescent Injury Prevention, 17(2), 119-126.