"Play gives children a chance to practice whay they are learning....They have to play with what they know to be true in order to find out more, and then they can use what they learn in new forms of play"
-Fred Rogers of Mister Rogers' Neighborhood
"You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation"
--Plato, Greek philosopher
When I was a little girl, climbing trees and exploring nature was a natural form of play. Today, if a child climbs a tree, they are yelled at for destroying landscaping.
Play was the most valued time and acitivity for a child in my past. When my brothers, sister and I were indoors, we were playing. There were times, we pretended to be teachers and students, chefs, beauticians and so much more. No one could keep us from outside unless we got in trouble that is. We would take a box and create a house or club house, tunnels and more. 
Coming up with several different games utilizing snow, dirt, or anything we had in reach was the most fun of all. Jump roping, playing tag, kickball, red rover are just a few of the activities we played growing up. You do not see a lot of children outside playing. Some are used to material things and have lost their imagination of creating and enjoying play. Children are possess many talents to create and use their imagination. It is nice to have found a husband who grew up with the same values on play. We are both children at heart and believe in children exploring & discovering the world around them. Play is essential to a child and adults too.
Dear,
ReplyDeleteI also found the quote by Plato very revealing. When you watch a child or anyone play, you can make conclusions about the person in terms of personality, social development, emotional maturity, and solving conflicts.
Play is different today from what it used to be. In those days, children play freely without fear, but today there are restrictions because of safety concerns, and technology has made it possible for children to send more time in door thus reducing creativity and imaginative play.
Rhonda,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed your post this week in regards to play. I completely agree with you in regards to not seeing a lot of children playing outdoors today. And your right it is as if the children of today have indeed lost their sense of imaginations, and that's a very sad fact. I can remember a time when we were younger and all we needed was the fresh outdoors and our neighborhood friends and we were set for the day. Now it's as if the children of today have to have some kind of electronic device just in order to stimulate their imaginations and just have fun. So I really do feel that it is our job as educators in the field, and even more so as parents to try to bring back play of yesterday to our children today. This way our children will have the opportunity to experience the same kind of positive experiences we had with play when we were younger. And as a result I definitely think that will make all the difference in the world!
Great Job!
Sylvia
Hi! Rhonda,
ReplyDeleteI remember one evening playing down the street with some of my neighborhood friends, I didn't realize the time because we were having so much fun and it was a school night. I remeber looking up the hill and seeing my mother standing at the couner, just looking at us, we knew immediatly what time it was, LATE and we better get our little tails home asap...lol... it was a wonderful point in my life.
I grew up in Jersey near the water front and I remeber the fun fishing with sticks and strings.You give good pictures of your childhood play. thanks for the visual.
ReplyDeleteI too remember all the bruised knees and elbows from playing so hard outside... I remember we used to play cops and robbers by smash up soda cans and slide them in between the tires and it would make this really loud noise. This assignment brought back so many memories...
ReplyDeleteYou are right climbing tress was a great pastime. Today as you stated a child gets in trouble for climbing trees. I have seen a lot children climb trees yeas back but saw very few fall out ot the tree.
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