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Please can we stop telling fathers just to pay for their children? They\u2019re more than walking wallets. We should also emphasise that spending time with children and playing is just as important for early childhood development. That\u2019s because play by fathers can have special, often irreplaceable qualities. Sometimes dad\u2019s way of playing involves a bit of magic and fun that can transform lives, particularly for disadvantaged children.<\/p>\n
So it\u2019s a mistake to demand that fathers work round the clock \u2014 perhaps for just $7 an hour \u2014 and fail to offer them support to spend time with children. That\u2019s especially true if the kids are asleep when dad gets home and there\u2019s no time to just hang out or play.<\/p>\n
The case for \u2018play and<\/em> pay\u2019 contributing to early childhood development is particularly strong for low-income dads\u2014and not only because the cash benefits of work are low. It\u2019s also because the returns from playing with dad can be particularly significant for lower-income children, who may be a risk of doing poorly at school.<\/p>\n Our research shows how these dads try to square the circle of paying and<\/em> playing. In one family, the father, working three low-wage jobs, would wake up his toddler late at night when he got home so they could play for an hour or two. Otherwise they wouldn\u2019t have had time together from one Sunday to the next. The child was tired the next day, but this was the only way the father saw to manage his responsibilities both to support his child financially and to spend time with her.<\/p>\n \u201cRough and tumble with dad is associated with learning to regulate emotions and manage social relationships. Dads pose more questions \u2026 boosting vocabulary, language and verbal reasoning.\u201d<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n Three factors explain why it\u2019s vital that public policy makers prioritise fathers playing with their young children. First, play is important for children per se in the early years. That\u2019s why it underpins institutional practice and curricula \u2013 play is recognised as a foundation of cognitive development as well as social and emotional learning. So if play is at the heart of early learning, it should also be a focus of parenting, whether by mothers or fathers.<\/p>\n