My Connections to Play

“As astronauts and space travelers children puzzle over the future; as dinosaurs and princesses they unearth the past. As weather reporters and restaurant workers they make sense of reality; as monsters and gremlins they make sense of the unreal.” ~ Gretchen Owocki (childhood educator)

“The activities that are the easiest, cheapest, and most fun to do – such as singing, playing games, reading, storytelling, and just talking and listening – are also the best for child development.” ~ Jerome Singer (professor, Yale University)

“Play is the highest expression of human development in childhood, for it alone is the free expression of what is in a child’s soul.” Friedrich Froebel (founder of the concept of kindergarten)



Of course, what else would a girl growing up in the 80's want to play with? 





A country girl needs her dirt bike




Michigan winters were a wonderful time, I didn't mind the cold



Play was as essential in my childhood as it most likely was in everyone else’s childhood.  My most prominent memories and lessons learned were through playful interactions.  Mostly when I think of my childhood play, I think of the sun, clouds, fields, and exploration.  In the summer, my amusement consisted of playing with children in the neighborhood, traveling from one house to the next, only returning to our homes at sunset or if our parents called us to come home.  I played in tree houses and rolled down hills.  I transformed my playhouse into a dance studio one day and a barn on a farm the next.  We rode our dirt bikes through trails in the back fields.  We rode our bicycles up to the baseball diamonds and watched baseball games while munching on junk food from the concession stands.  In the fall it play meant hayrides and jumping in piles of leaves.  In the winter, play meant sledding and ice skating.  My parents supported my play by letting me be free, while still keeping me safe.  I never felt that it was my parents’ job to entertain me.  It was my job to find something to do and be a kid.  Play was an vital part of my everyday life.

Play is different today in that it has barriers, such as safety, to contend with.  No longer do most parents feel comfortable with letting their youngster run the neighborhood unsupervised by an adult; frankly, who can blame them for feeling this way?  Generally, children are kept inside more and participate in more adult initiated activities.  They may default to activities such as watching T.V. or playing video games because they are not allowed to go outside.    

Even though play looks different from generation to generation, children and play will always have one similarity: children will naturally always have the desire to play.  It is if that play is nourished and scaffolded throughout their childhood that determines the nature, quality, and direction of their play.  My aspiration is that children will continue to play and learn from this needed skill.  It is essential to the success of our society in the future.  Children learn social rules, problem solving, creativity, and a multitude of other necessary life skills from play.  These are the characteristics of successful citizens in communities around the world; they are not skills that can be learned in any book.