Designing and Planning for Play has been published to encourage local authorities, schools, settings, designers and architects to make greater use of creativity in designing spaces that allow children to use their imagination, with natural play design.

This article by Alison Clarke explores the methodology and initial issues raised in seeking to involve young children in the design process. It reports a study concerned with how young children can play an active role in the designing and developing of children's spaces. The focus is on children under 6 years old in early childhood provision.

This article defines play, reviews the main types of play and their developmental benefits in various areas. 

The Guardian Teachers Network Asks: Can learning through play really help teachers to achieve their formal lesson goals?

Over the past 10-15 years, child development researchers have expressed worries about the fact that an increasing number of parents in the western world tend to over-schedule their children. Lego Learning Institute conducted a cross-cultural study of parental values and attitudes toward children, to find out the truth.