My Connections to Play

Play is such an essential part of life. We begin to experience the wonder of the world around us from infancy and mature in our methods to take in information and relate it to ourselves through the act of play. Even now as an adult, I find joy in "free play" in the terms of doing things that I enjoy and that are beneficial to my self. As a child, I was lucky enough to be able to experience play within my school systems as the time period then celebrated learning within the classroom through play and activities. This was how I learned and is what sparked my love for teaching.

Play for me as a child revolved around being outside, getting dirty and being active. I have more scars on my body from my days climbing trees, biking, and falling off playground sets than I have accumulated in my years since I was a child. Each scar is a memory of a time where I was free to utilize my creativity with my friends and family to be anything I wanted, to do anything I wanted. It was freedom.

Play was all about making believe and focusing on what the world was made up around us. I was known by everyone in the neighborhood, regardless of where I lived, as I frequented the streets, searching for the next great adventure. Even now as an adult, I sometimes catch myself day dreaming about roaming the streets, finding a secret quest or a hidden tunnel to explore. As a child, anything and everything was used to create a world of imagination and memories.  It was a simpler time, even in the early 1990s, where the world felt safe and the act of creative and physical play for children was celebrated. Today's society only knows play in the form of a screen and a simple slide of the finger. Gone are the days where children are allowed to roam the streets on their bike, and gone are the days where kids ached for the rain to stop so they could go explore. Perhaps the worst part is how schools have become more test-oriented, eliminating the time once used for structured play for child which would be extremely beneficial to get our children out in the world exploring the physical aspect of our world, rather than the technological one.