My Connection to Play

Two great quotes;

“You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation.”
― Plato

http://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/879.Plato

 

Play is our brain's favorite way of learning.

Diane Ackerman
Contemporary American author

http://www.museumofplay.org/education/education-and-play-resources/play-quotes

The Essentials things I would need for play.....my FRIENDS and TOYS in my younger self

 

 

 

 

 

 

As a child, I had the best time playing in my yard. My parents encouraged play and allowed our home to be the head quarter for friends to hang out at all day over the weekend and after school!

 

Today's play is much different from the 70's. Today children have videos, x-boxes, wii games and so much more. In the 70's we all had sticks and balls to play with. I'm glad today that toy guns are not as welcomed as they were in the 70's.

My hope for the parents today, is let your child have a balance of structured paly with free play!

 

The role of paly was a part of life everyday. We were expected get homework done then go outside until the street lights came on.  Today play has it's same meaning.....freedom and fun. Children should be given that break each toady to run from their world of stress through play! As for adults we need that pleasure....we should train our self to have fun, it could be the form of sports, bile riding whatever, but we most have be intentional about working hard, resting and PLAYING!

 

Relationship Reflection

Relationship Reflection

 I love meeting people and sharing history.

Unfortunately, I can’t say that I have childhood friends in my life or even a friend that I speak to on a daily or monthly basis. My daughter, son  and my husband are the wonderful people that keep me motivated.

My husband and I made up in our minds that we would treat each other better than we treat our co-workers or other family members. We agreed to handle things on our own and if we needed help, we would seek  a seasoned, wise, Christian, whom values truth and love  for guidance.

In our experience over time, we have learned that others truly look for drama to divert them from their own issues; we just don’t have the time nor do we want to entertain those people.  Special characteristics are confidence, kindness, and care in how we deliver or have a crucial conversation.

The expectation of a healthy relationship was actually modeled for me from a former department on my job, at the Hospital, where investing in tools to have a successful crucial conversations or learning gratitude , to produce the  best outcome in patient care, reminded me that this tool could be used anywhere: home or work. So for the best outcome in a child’s development; honesty, respect and participation to build a relationship is how I like to think I  contribute to an effective partnership with families.

 

PLAY DURING EARLY CHILDHOOD IS NECESSARY!

Play  during early childhood is necessary if humans are to reach their full potential  https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=606725958741575962#editor/target=post;postID=7401553333293654715

My Commentary

I have learned so much about play and interplay. My greatest wish is that adults truly look at infant play and advocate for  our smallest citizens  while praising them on the hard work  to communicate their silent language of cues.
Mister Rogers was wonderful and  I have quoted him on play, yet  even in his powerful role of influence he missed the opportunity to shared about the wonders and excited joy our infants have in discovering their world:-)

One quote about children

Play is often talked about as if it were a relief from serious learning. But for children play is serious learning. Play is really the work of childhood.
Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/f/fredrogers193081.html#BZl4GiPrDwRpLwZM.99

 

Fred Rogers AKA Mister Rogers:-)

 

 

 

Testing for Intelligence

Testing for Intelligence

 

 Child: plural noun: children

1.    a young human being below the age of puberty or below the legal age of majority https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#q=what+does+child+mean

 

 Holistic;

1.    characterized by comprehension of the parts of something as intimately interconnected and explicable only by reference to the whole.

                         2.  Medicine characterized by the treatment of the whole person, taking into account mental and social factors, rather than just the physical symptoms of a disease. https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#q=what+does+holistic+mean

 

 

When I think of the whole child and an asked what is my opinion on how a child should be assessed?  My answer, is not only testing in academic achievements which on paper give us a portion of how the child  comprehend questions , but in the environment of how a child  functions. Example …emotions, respective, descriptive and expressive language during interaction. Also vision, hearing, taste, and smell, also physical development plays a great part on how the child takes information in and applies  the data. We have Ages and Stages Questionnaires from birth to six, at this point in elementary and secondary peers play a crucial role how children isolate themselves or flourish because of confidence. So an environmental assessment of the whole child would be beneficial.

 

Let’s look at China   

 

 May 2007 | Volume 64 | Number 8 Educating the Whole Child Pages 70-73

China and the Whole Child

Yong Zhao

A nation with a rigid thousand-year-old testing system struggles to implement a more holistic approach to education.

Half a century ago, Mao Tse-tung articulated the central aim of Chinese education: “Our educational policy must enable everyone who receives an education to develop morally, intellectually, and physically and become a worker with both socialist consciousness and culture” (1957). China embraced, in theory, Mao's appeal for educating the whole child, and this approach remains the guiding principle for education in China today. Yet it has had a minimal effect on Chinese education.

Overworked, Underrested

Students in China continue to be burdened with long school days, mountains of homework, and time-consuming school-oriented extracurricular activities. Sleep deprivation among students as a result of excessive schoolwork is a persistent problem. According to the Beijing Education Commission, over 60 percent of students don't get sufficient sleep (Zhang, 2006). On weekdays, students leave for school at approximately 7:00 a.m.; they typically get home around 6:00 p.m., with at least two or three hours of homework to complete. On weekends, students attend tutoring sessions, training courses for various contests, or test preparation events (Liu & Liu, 2004; Lv & Song, 2005). They are simply too busy to sleep or engage in leisure activities.

Reference;

Yong, Z. (2007, May 1). China and the Whole Child. . Retrieved , from http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/may07/vol64/num08/China-and-the-Whole-Child.aspx

 

 

Additional Comments

 

Above all else the cliché “ the children are our future”   is very try, and as educators  it is our responsibility to stay current in education and  objective  to how to enhance, create and implement fair assessment that look at the whole child’s   way of taking in and applying life skills.

 

 

 

Noise and Limited Play as Stressors

Noise  and Limited play as stressors

I asked my daughter what was a stressor for her  as a child. She share with me noise was a big one. Being an only child meant it was always quiet in the house. When my daughter was  about thirteen  visiting  family (cousins) especially the  younger ones which  were always running through the house, made her feel anxious. As a teenager she said she would never work with children. She felt they were loud, and had way too much energy.  Today at twenty-two she is a counselor at a recreation center, I’m glad she grew out of the anxiety I think what change her mind was as a college student she needed a job. She thought about how much fun it was( as a teen)  to be a part of  an after school center . She didn’t have to watch anyone,  it was about her and her friends while the counselors  focused  on the children. YET in a home away from home environment  children running up and down the stairs in a house felt annoying to her, or children fighting  over  toys made her feel like a referee . Somehow maturity and needing a job help her grow out of the anxiety. Today she shares many stories each night about how a child makes her laugh.

 

 

From the other end of the spectrum , think about the children from  Koriyama. Because of air pollution/ radiation, they cannot play outside  because of living  close to a nuclear plant.  

 

Child Stress on Rise after Fukushima

March 10, 2014, Monday @ 17:03 in World | Views: 17

 

 

 

Children in Fukushima in 2011. Photo: flickr.com

Some of the children in Koriyama, just a short drive away from Fukushima nuclear plant, barely know how it feels to play outside, as fear of radiation has kept them inside, Voice of Russia reports.

Even though the rigorous safety limits for outdoor activities, set after multiple nuclear explosions took place at Fukushima Dai-ichi plant in 2011, have now been lifted up to a certain degree, parental concerns and deep-seated habits still keep the children indoors for most of the time, Voice of Russia says.

- See more at: http://www.independent.mk/articles/2461/Child+Stress+on+Rise+after+Fukushima#sthash.2avCQold.dpuf

I would think the easiest solution would be to move, but what happens when you simply don’t have the resources.  We all know just how important play, exploration, and certainly being outside is part of a child’s experience of development.  This article was very heart breaking and the impact for change in this situation is very costly.  

Reference;

http://www.independent.mk/articles/2461/Child+Stress+on+Rise+after+Fukushima