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Talk5 min

The benefits of play in child brain development

Jesse Ilhardt · TED

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About

A little bit of playtime can have big benefits for a child's developing brain, but adult participation is a crucial ingredient for best results. Early-education leader Jesse Ilhardt makes the case for you to put down the phone, pick up the make-believe tea cup (or that blanket-superhero cape) and take the time to experiment with imagination during kids' most formative learning years. [Directed by Sinan Göksel, Studio Big Box, music by Salil Bhayani, cAMP Studio].

The talk

  1. The benefits of play in child brain development 5 min · TED's player

Credits and licence

Institution
TED
Department
TED-Ed
Speaker
Jesse Ilhardt
Year
2025
Level
For everyone
Language
English
Subjects
Psychology and the brain, Teaching and learning
Source
TED
Licence
CC BY-NC-ND 4.0, as TED states it. Non-commercial use only, and no changed versions. TED's terms
Attribution
TED Talks are licensed by TED under Creative Commons BY-NC-ND 4.0 International and are shown here in TED's own player, as TED's usage policy asks.
Who can watch
TED gives no rating. Invisible Network shows it to Teens profiles and older, judged from what the source says about it. How courses are placed