I agreed with much of Paul Tough’s article. I take exception, however, to his implication that the Alliance for Childhood report Crisis in the Kindergarten calls for free-for-all, unstructured play. This is just not true. I quote directly from the Alliance’s report: In a healthy kindergarten, play does not mean “anything goes”. It does not deteriorate into chaos. Nor is play so tightly structured by adults that children are denied the opportunity to learn through their own initiative and exploration. Kindergarteners need a balance of child-initiated play in the presence of engaged teachers and more focused experiential learning guided by teachers.

My sense is that Alliance for Childhood and Tools of the Mind are more on the same page than Tough implies. Either way, both organizations are working hard to bring valuable, imaginative play back into the school day – and this is a good thing.