Backing up a bit, here are a few thoughts about why I titled my blog “Empowered by Play”. If you read my piece Six, Going on Sixteen in Rethinking Schools, then you probably have a good idea. A few years ago, while teaching 5, 6 and 7-year-olds, I was caught off-guard by the needs of youngsters who were growing up way too quickly. They were stressed, and so was I. It was a complicated problem, and in the end, an explicit focus on play helped to turn things around. Because I could imagine a different kind of classroom, and they could tap into their own creativity and resourcefulness, we were empowered by play.
It happens all around us – all the time. Just stop and look. My son recently taught himself how to swing. Now he proudly runs to the swing set for time alone to hone and enjoy his skill. He is playing and working…a kind of work that is playful and intrinsically motivating. Even though he’s only five, he explains it expertly: “If it’s hard work, but if you like it, then it’s fun.”
Some folks like to play with ideas and imagine new possibilities. Others like to play with words and create poems and stories. And others like to play with numbers. For instance, I get a kick out of playing with the nine-times tables. Have you ever tried it? The patterns revealed are fascinating, and to me, fun. It works like this: multiply any number by 9, then add the sum of the digits. The answer will always be 9. For example: 9 x 13 = 117. 1 + 1 + 7 = 9. And that’s just the start of it – there are so many more patterns like this.
Grown-ups and kids need time to play and imagine…in the school day, in the work day, and at home. Otherwise, what’s the point?
I love sudoku, gardening, sewing and cooking, I consider all of these hobbies my "play". To me play is a natural response to curiosity.
[...] in picking every berry that was ready to eat. Absolutely, purely delicious fun. One of my sons, who learned to swing last June, taught his brother how to get himself going on the swing in our backyard. Excellent! And the two [...]