After viewing a TED talk last night about the importance of play, I decided I wanted to spend more time reading research about play. I visited the National Institute for Play website. While exploring, I read about the different types of play and how play can affect your health, relationships, and education. I found this information to make a lot of sense, however there is not much research cited on this website. The research that was cited was the same research presented in the TED talk I watched last night. I was hoping more research would be presented to help validate the institutes beliefs. Also, many of the references that were cited date back to the 1950's-1990's, not quite current research. With that said, I still feel as though much of the information presented on the site makes sense. For example, people who play are happier and have stronger relationships. One quote that has stuck with me is "the opposite of play is not work, it's depression." It makes sense to me that children and adults who do not engage in playful activities will not be as happy as people who do.
One belief presented that I don't agree with is that preschool aged children should be allowed to engage in rough-and-tumble play at school. This includes wrestling and hitting in a "playful way." While parents may allow their children to engage in rough-and-tumble play at home, I don't believe it is appropriate or safe for school.
I agree; the power of play is underrated! I feel as adults we try to make our day as structured as possible to get everything done in a timely manner, which unfortunately, leeks over into our students lives as well. I teach physical education, you would think that we would encourage and promote "playing" but instead we structure all of the activities to have a goal and an end result. Occasionally we allow students to work together to come up with a new and creative game, but they struggle with this because they do not on a regular basis just play.
ReplyDeleteI too have had a hard time finding research that supports the power of play and how to encourage it throughout the school day. I did attend a conference were a gentlemen was presenting games that fostered play in children and adults; by the time I left the session my mood had shifted from being a tad bit bored to excited and enthused. Wouldn't it be wonderful to have more of these moments throughout the day for our students!
I did not see the video, but I believe strongly that kids, and adults, should have the opportunity to play. Our four sons (aged 15 to 22) will still go outside and play wiffle ball for an afternoon. I never really thought about what it accomplished, but I can see that it allows them to maintain their relationship, even with the age spread. They are negotiating amongst themselves, sharing their lives with each other, and making up the rules as they go. It is a neat thing to watch. I wonder if we process things in our lives through play. I know when I go for a run, I am able to think more about "bigger picture" issues and leave the details behind. "The opposite of play is not work, it's depression." That is a very interesting statement.
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