Play Quotes.....
Essential Play Items for my Younger
Self
Boxes, Boxes
and Boxes!!!!!
Boxes became
whatever I imagined....... many different rooms of a house, a school, school
buses, stores and so much more. I spent
many hours, days, and weeks playing in the boxes that my mom and dad's new
furniture came home in!
I Loved Cooking!!!!
Who Supported my Play:
When I was younger I played all day, from the time the sun
came up until the street lights came on.
My mother and father were very supportive of play. The boxes I played with for a long time were
huge and they let me store them in the garage to keep them safe for the
weather. Whenever I would complain that
I was board I was always encouraged to go play by all surrounding adults,
including my childcare provider. I
didn't watch a lot of television when I was young as I spent a lot of time
outside playing. When I went to
preschool I remember playing all the time too.
The only time I remember sitting at the table was to color or eat. My parents and family members always played
games such as cards or board games with me.
Further, when I entered elementary school they supported play as well,
we had recess every day in the morning, during lunch and in the afternoon! Now days recess is very limited. I also remember playing a lot in
Kindergarten, which has also become limited. To be honest I am not sure I ever have
stopped playing. Just the other day I
was running around my front yard with the kids and someone commented, she is
lucky she gets to play all the time! My
response to them was that is why I love my job!
When I Played VS Play of Today:
I believe the play of today is different from when I was
little as so many children spend much of their time using electronics and are
not getting outside to play or even playing inside. I believe that it is important that children
get away from play of electronics and become more engaged in type of play I
grew up doing. The children that are enrolled in my family childcare program
are provided with many learning centers and they are able to choose where they
play. They use the computer minimally
for education learning activities and the TV is used only for educational
movement activities that I participate in with them, so they can learn the
movements and then we switch to using just the CD. We do not sit and watch the screen as I
believe they get enough of that at home!
I hope that as we educate families that they will encourage their
children to put down the electronics and get involved in playing as they learn
so much from playing and interacting with others.
Role of Play:
As a child I learned and gained a lot through all the play
experiences I had. My imagination was
stretched, I learned to share, cooperate and to get along with others. I learned to take turns and accept others
ideas and opinions as well as what made others happy and upset. The list could go on and on about the amazing
benefits that I gained from playing. As
an adult I am still playing! This is
probably because of the profession I chose.
After reading about the benefits of play for adults I am glad that I am
in the profession that I am in because I still have the opportunities to play
all day. Not only do children learn and
gain so much through playing, adults do to.
Therefore, it is beneficial for adult to still allow time to play. Even if it is just playing with your kids,
telling jokes, goofing off or dressing up at Halloween (Robinson, Smith, &
Segal, 2014). According to Robinson, Smith, and Segal (2014), if adults
incorporate play and laughter into their lives it will help them to be in a
better mood, improve relationships and their outlook on things. I believe because my job allows me to play
laugh and have a good time all day I don't get as stressed out with little
things like many other individuals do.
Robinson, L., Smith, M.,M.A. & Segal, J., Ph.D. (2014)
Why Play Matters for Adults. Retrieved
from http://www.helpguide.org/life/creative_play_fun_games.htm#benefits
