My Connections to Play

Select two quotes that you feel summarize what play represented for you in childhood.

    Include two to three pictures of essential play items for your younger self.

   

Describe how people supported play when you were younger and/or the role of play in your childhood.

When I look back at my preschool days, from what I can recall, I remember playing in the “kitchen area” in school. In first grade all I can remember is playing outdoors in a big “playground”. It was really just a big area we would run around and play games with friends in, no play structure, just jump ropes, balls, chalk and hula hoops.

Separate from in school, I recall my dad always creating movement games to teach my sister and I, new words or math problems. He would write words or numbers on index cards and spread them out all over the floor. He would call out a word and have my sister and I search for it. Sometimes he would put the words in places and we would do a scavenger hunt. For the numbers he would call out things like “5+4” or “15-5.” This was pretty much throughout middle school.

I also remember my older sister helping me to read by putting on a play for my
parents. Either we would use puppets and read behind a current or take the book
and read in front of our parents.

Write a brief entry on how you feel play today is similar or different from the play in which you engaged as a child and what your hope for young children is now with regard to play.

A lot is similar from what “play” was when I was in preschool. The classroom set up always involved a ‘Dramatic Play Area’ along with a “Reading Area/Nook” and multiple areas of exploration. I recall during my preschool days more lessons on alphabets and numbers that involved sitting at the carpet several times and for long periods of times. Now I see carpet times consisting of 15 mins or less and always involving music, or an engaging group activity. I can see how “lessons” are being developed into play and if there is anything instructional it is open ended questions through read alouds that may occur once or twice in a day.

Include your thoughts regarding the role of play throughout your life and/or the role of play throughout childhood and adulthood.

I feel that many people have preferences in the ways they learn. A lot of times you hear people say “I learn better by doing” or “Can you show me how you do that?” These are visual and kinesthetic learners. At a young age our minds are not as adaptive to instructional teaching. Young children learn much more though doing and experimenting. I could sit children down and read them books about a butterfly’s life cycle but what will they retain? They could recall the pictures, or bits of information for one day. Or, I actually bring in caterpillars and we can observe their change, engage in conversations about what is actually happening in front of their eyes, draw and paint our “observations” and sing songs on what we see. We can engage in pretend play and put on butterfly wigs after we emerge from our chrysalis. We can play play dough and create caterpillars and mold them beautiful butterfly wings. Even now when holding training sessions, I see how I can develop activities that allows teachers to be more hands on when learning new information or practicing new approaches to teaching.