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Once released to mainspace, the article will need in-links to integrate it into the encyclopedia. Fortunately, the term is already wikilinked in these 5 articles, so it will instantly have five to start with, and will never be an orphan.

But there are dozens of other articles that have the term free play in the article, but unlinked. These articles should be found, and the text string turned into a wikilink. Finding them is a little tricky, because the term has meaning in video gaming, lotteries, sports (football, hockey, fencing), and other topic areas. Here are a set of searches which attempt to prune out irrelevant topic areas, but doing so also may eliminate good, on-topic articles from the result set. The best balance of precision and recall appears to be the one that returns 51 results, but feel free to try any of them:

We should also not ignore other strings like unstructured play, play[ing] without adult supervision, and similar phrases which might also be relevant for linking to the article. Mathglot (talk) 21:13, 3 April 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Note that we have to decide what WP:PRIMARYTOPIC is for the term, and then perhaps adjust Free play (disambiguation) accordingly. According to the current redirect, Free play redirects to Play (activity), and it may be sufficient just to change the redirect, and leave te disambig page as is. Mathglot (talk) 08:24, 28 April 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Globalization

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Free play is discussed and studied internationally, both professionally and publicly. The article lacks international coverage, and should be globalized. While international coverage may also be present in English, it may benefit from foreign sources as well. Here are some foreign terms that can be used as search keywords in order to help find sources in other languages.

Table of terms for free play in some foreign languages
Common terms for "Free play" in selected languages
Language Term Usage notes
Catalan joc lliure Standard in Catalan‑language pedagogical texts; used in Generalitat de Catalunya curricular guidelines.
Chinese 自由游戏 (zìyóu yóuxì) Common in Mainland China research; Taiwan publications sometimes use 自主游戏 (zìzhǔ yóuxì, "self‑directed play").
Dutch vrij spel Used in Dutch Playwork and early‑childhood education literature; sometimes expanded to vrij, ongestructureerd spel.
French jeu libre Common in French Éducation Nationale resources and in France's pedagogical research; sometimes qualified as jeu libre autonome.
German freies Spiel The predominant term in German early‑childhood studies; also appears as offenes Spiel in some Waldorf and Montessori‑oriented writings.
Italian gioco libero Main term in Italian pedagogical journals; occasionally you'll see gioco spontaneo emphasizing spontaneity.
Japanese 自由遊び (jiyū asobi) Term in Japanese nursery‑school pedagogy; also 野放し遊び (nobanashi asobi, "letting‑children‑play‑free") in some discussions.
Portuguese jogo livre Used in educational research. In Brazil, known as brincadeira livre.
Russian свободная игра (svobodnaya igra) Standard in Russian child‑development texts; also 'игра без правил' (play without rules) in popular discussion.
Spanish juego libre Widely used in early‑childhood education research and by the World Organization for Early Childhood Education (OMEP España).
Swedish fri lek in Swedish early childhood education literature and policy documents

Note: this table was adapted from output from Chat GPT. It should not be used for adding anything to the article directly; the goal is to provide keywords to be used for searching for foreign language sources on the topic which could be used to expand the article. Mathglot (talk) 00:10, 24 April 2025 (UTC)[reply]

I started looking at possible sources in the language that I presumed might have the least coverage of the ones listed in the table, and it turns out that rich academic sourcing is available about free play in Catalan. I'll get back to Catalan sources later in detail, but just wanted to say unless I miss my guess, this plus the § Sources in Japanese already found by Pokelego999 bodes very well for the availability of sourcing in all of these languages. Mathglot (talk) 19:44, 24 April 2025 (UTC)[reply]
One thing to watch out for, is translations from English (or, less frequently, from other languages). When you get a book entitled, Vrij spel (Dutch for "Free play") but the author's name is Stephen-something, you can be pretty sure it is not a book written originally by a Dutch author. Same thing for other languages. Mathglot (talk) 08:46, 28 April 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Sources in Japanese

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Did a brief JP search through Scholar. A few hits:
Types of Movements During Free Play in Toddlers
Triggers for Interaction with Peers in Young Children: A Study of Free Play Situations in Kindergarten
A Study on the Scale of Children's Activities, Types of Play, and Types of Corners in Free Play
Interaction between Children and Caregivers and Developmental Support in Free Play
The Reality of Young Children's Motor Experiences in Free Play
Effects of Ladder Play, Circuit Play, and Free Play on Physical Fitness and Motor Ability Improvement in Early Childhood: A Focus on Exercise Programs Emphasizing Intrinsic Motivation
Understanding the Situation and Engaging with Children through the "Frame" of Teachers in Free Play Situations: An Analysis of Teachers' Narratives
Just a brief search seems to yield a lot of research from universities and the like. I'd need to do more digging to properly translate every inch of the source but from what brief bits I can glance at there looks to be a lot to research here.
It seems to be roughly similar in terms of hits for each language I sift through. Admittedly I'm not exactly familiar with articles that have this level of scope, given I predominantly work on articles about TV and video games, so I'm not entirely sure how exactly these sources should be utilized. Should these be split into how it's been researched in different countries, aka subsections? Or should they be added on to what we already have as a base in the article? Magneton Considerer: Pokelego999 (Talk) (Contribs) 00:47, 24 April 2025 (UTC)[reply]
Pokelego999, these are fantastic, thanks! I'm hoping contributors will eventually add sources for other languages (I plan to add a couple), so I've added subsesction heading "Sources in Japanese" above your comment; hope that's all right. You ask a very pertinent question about how to order it. I believe there is no simple answer, and depends on a lot of factors. I may have more to say about that later, but it's worth examining how quality articles on analogous topics that deal well with broad regional coverage have done it. Mathglot (talk) 05:36, 24 April 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Sources in Catalan

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Some sources in Catalan clearly show that the topic is studied there.

Sources on free play in Catalan
  • Edo Basté, Maria Mercè; Blanch Gelabert, Sílvia; Anton Rosera, Montserrat, eds. (2016). El joc a la primera infància [Play in early childhood] (in Catalan). Octaedro. ISBN 9788499218380. OCLC 986102498.
  • Anàlisi comparativa del joc lliure i joc dirigit en escola bressol: efectes en la autonomia, creativitat i socialització dels infants [Comparative analysis of free play and directed play in nursery school: effects on children's autonomy, creativity and socialization.] (in Catalan), retrieved 26 April 2025
  • El rol de l’adult en el joc lliure de l’infant [The role of adults in children's free play] (in Catalan), retrieved 26 April 2025
  • Anàlisi de la presència de rols estereotipats de gènere en el joc lliure i en l’àmbit familiar dels infants de 3-6 anys [Analysis of the presence of gender stereotyped roles in play and in the family environment of children 3-6 years old.] (in Catalan), retrieved 26 April 2025
  • El joc lliure i espontani a través de la pràctica psicomotriu en Educació Infantil [Free and spontaneous play through psychomotor practice in early childhood education.] (in Catalan), retrieved 26 April 2025
  • El joc lliure amb material no estructurat a l'etapa 0-3: disseny d'una proposta d'intervenció a l'Escola Bressol El Roc Petit [Free play with unstructured material in the 0-3 stage: design of an intervention proposal at the Bressol School in El Roc Petit] (in Catalan), retrieved 26 April 2025
  • Els rols de gènere presents en el joc lliure dels alumnes de secundària: estudi de dos centres educatius de Vic [Gender roles in the free play of secondary school students: a study of two schools in Vic.] (in Catalan), retrieved 26 April 2025
  • El joc popular com a eina educativa [Popular games as an educational tool] (PDF) (in Catalan), retrieved 26 April 2025
  • El joc i les joguines en la primera infància des d’una perspectiva de gènere [Play and games in early childhood from a gender perspective] (in Catalan), retrieved 26 April 2025
  • Calafell, Pere (4 March 2025). "El valor del joc lliure en el dia a dia a l'aula | Escoles bressol" [The value of free play in everyday classroom life | Preschools] (in Catalan). Ajuntament de Barcelona.

Mathglot (talk) 10:39, 25 April 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Pre-release prep

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The notability of this topic has been demonstrated ten times over, so the topic is clearly suitable for mainspace. I am preparing the draft for release and would like to invite all interested parties to add whatever edits you deem necessary in this final preparation for release to mainspace, where the article can continue to be developed and improved.

MolecularPilot, you are to be congratulated for starting a draft on this important topic. It has really been an education and I have enjoyed researching and expanding it, but I started out with no background on the topic. It's been a while since you've edited here, and I hope you will continue to contribute. Because you appear to have significant knowledge about the Free play topic, you are in an ideal position to evaluate and improve the article, especially with respect to WP:DUEWEIGHT. By that I mean, the proportion of attention devoted to the various subtopics, as reflected in part by section organization and section lengths which should correspond very roughly to the amount of attention given to these subtopics in the universe of secondary sources. Is too much or too little attention devoted to one or another subtopic? Is there an important aspect of Free play that is addressed in sources but not treated at all here? I hope you can weigh in on this, before or after release. The § Globalization section above hints at an area where significant expansion might occur to existing sections or new regional subtopics based on foreign sources; can you comment on that?

Inviting @Pokelego999, GenericUser24, and Theroadislong: to make any last minute tweaks to the draft needed to make it suitable for release, or to add any other feedback here. Thanks, Mathglot (talk) 19:39, 24 April 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Here are some areas that could definitely be improved (but would not block release, imho):
  • § Terminology section is choppy; almost a bullet list of definitions; a narrative style would be better.
  • § Background section has actual bullets, as stand-ins for content not yet written. This is not encyclopedic in style; they should be dropped or replaced.
  • Sections § Rise and § Decline need expansion (as the templates indicate).
Mathglot (talk) 10:10, 25 April 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Redirects

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This was previously a hidden note in the Draft, after it was moved there from mainspace:

Note: The following pages were redirects to Free play before draftification:

Mathglot (talk) 03:19, 1 May 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Released

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On 04:40, 1 May 2025. Plenty more still to do. A lot of the existing sources already cited have much more usable material than is cited in the article, and could be mined for more content to add to the article. A lot of sources exist in foreign languages as well. See § Globalization. Mathglot (talk) 04:53, 1 May 2025 (UTC)[reply]

@Mathglot sorry I haven't been doing much, my schedule's been packed and I haven't had a lot of time to research this subject given my overall unfamiliarity with its intricacies. I'll try to help when I have time again. Magneton Considerer: Pokelego999 (Talk) (Contribs) 12:44, 1 May 2025 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks you to you all for your wonderful work on this article in my absence, which was due to several unexpected real-life troubles popping up which meant I couldn't log I for a while. :) MolecularPilotTalk 05:16, 14 May 2025 (UTC)[reply]
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