Q.   Do I need to play with my child whenever he/she asks?

"No," says Karen Friedland-Brown, Parent Education Coordinator at Peninsula Parents Place. "Young children generally like their parents near by and often try to engage adults in their play. Children need to learn to play alone as well as with others. Even babies can amuse themselves for short times. Children need the time and privacy to have their play be self-directed. In the same way that adults don't like to be interrupted by constant requests, children can find adult interruptions intrusive."