My Connections to Play- Ready, Set, Go!!!!

“Children need the freedom and time to play. Play is not a luxury, play is a necessity.’

–Kay Redfield Jamison

“Play keeps us vital and alive. It gives us enthusiasm for life that is irreplaceable. Without it, life just doesn’t taste good.”

-Lucia Capocchione

“We are never more fully alive, more completely ourselves or more deeply engrossed in anything than when we are playing. “

-Charles Shaefer

                                            

When I was a little girl, my mother had to threaten my life in order for me to come in from outside for dinner and a bath. This usually happened during my summer break. I can recall helping my mother fill up a recycled milk jug full of water every night and putting it in the freezer so that me, my friends, and siblings could have a drink of water while outside. That was not as fun as turning on the water hose and drinking the water as it shot up in the air! Our neighbors would tattle on us for doing it, but it was worth it.

Play was very important to me as a child. From kickball to dodge ball, to baseball- we made up the rules and had a great time. Sure we had arguments, cuts and scrapes from playing those games, but it was all in good fun. I also enjoyed indoor games. We played school, or monopoly, or operation or Go Fish. There was never a dull moment. My mother also gave us an Atari game for Christmas. She had to put us on a schedule in order to ensure that we continued to play outside. Now that I look back, I think the schedule was for her sanity. She was a house wife. and I'm sure that we would've gotten on her nerves if we stayed in the house all day. Besides, we were loud and rowdy when it came to play. It didn't matter if we were outside or not! :-) I loved my childhood. It was so carefree. I really enjoyed the moments when mommy came outside and played hide-and-seek, or monitored us as we ran through the sprinklers in bathing suits and swimming trunks. With all that going on, who needed a swimming pool?

I thought that once I began school, playtime was going to be over. Luckily for me it wasn’t. We worked and played in the classroom. We worked and played outside. I incorporate the same tactics in my classroom today. I work with kindergartners. It is almost impossible for me to keep my sanity if I don’t allow them playtime. Sure we work in groups doing hands on activities in centers. However, I believe that they deserve an unstructured break just as I do. We are studying rocks. For our outside time, the students took magnifying glasses from our science kit and searched for rocks. The project was a success. They even made up a game to see who could find the biggest, shiniest rocks. The person who did was simply ‘the winner’. I thought it was so cute. I just walked around observing and taking it all in. The whole time I was thinking to myself that they really listened in class and they’re applying what they’ve learned without much direction from me.

I have always been in favor of play. I believe that’s because I was given the freedom to learn and play at the same time. Kids deserve an opportunity to think for themselves without having an adult tell them what to do and how to do it. Hands on activities are an awesome asset to the classroom. It helps the children focus on what they’ve learned and apply it without having to use pencil and paper.  I hope that as I continue teaching I can stay with the Pre-K/K age group. They are the ones that have less paperwork while learning and can still enjoy the freedom of hands on engagement.

(Investigating rocks...ROCKS!)

RELATIONSHIP REFLECTION

"Cherish your human connections-Your relationships with friends and family."
-Joseph Brodsky
I love this quote. It is plain, simple and to the point. It also describes how I feel about my relationships. I love my family. They are the people that I'm stuck with, so I must love them, right? On a serious note, I am the youngest of nine children. Before my mother passed away a year ago today, my parents had been married for 56 years. My family is my foundation. They are the first people that I had a relationship with. Therefore, it is important to acknowledge them in every way. Below are pictures of the people  who are important to me:

These photos have captured the important and precious people in my life. My relationship with my parents, siblings, and friends are all different. There is one common bond that keeps the realtionship wheel rolling- I love them, and they love me. We support one another. We act as counselors. doctors, and lawyers. Our main goal is to make sure that we take care of one another. show support, and give tons of love! I feel that if I didn't have these people in my life, I would be alone and miserable. I would not be able to function because they are the glue that holds me together.
                                                   When I think about the relationship that I have with these people as it relates to my career in early childhood, I think of my parents. When I come across a child who is stubborn or defiant, I think of how my mother would handle it. What would she say? What would she do? I often look back on my childhood and realize that the relationships that I have built seem to fall in the catagory of long term. I look at my parents and their marriage life. I look at my siblings and thier relationships with husbands/wives. I also look at the work ethic of my father. He gained much respect from his co-workers because of his patience, dependability and endurance. That alone gained him life-long friendships. My mother never met a stranger. She would've talked to the wall if it responded back. I gained all of these characteristics because I was surrounded by the makings of them my entire life.
                                              Being that I come from a large family, we developed partnerships by working together. (Cleaning, cooking, playing, etc.) It was our responsibility just as much as our parents to keep our family organized and on track. This teamwork also hepled me make me a team player at work. I believe there is a solution to every problem. If we just work together, the problem can be solved and we can move on. I appreciate the relationships that I have with the wonderful people in my life. Loving and knowing them makes it easier to get along with others. My family is my life. In the end, they are all that I have!