"Play is the beginning of knowledge" -Anonymous
“Children need the freedom and time to play. Play is not a luxury. Play is a necessity.” Kay Redfield Jamison (professor of psychiatry)
I picked this photo because it demonstrates my favorite type of play-Dramatic play, these children are playing dress up, and for that moment they can be someone else.
I love this idea. I want this for my classroom and if I had the space I would defiantly get a boat for the room. The fact that this is a real boat makes it a great prop for dramatic play. I love using real items for my dramatic play area, I put real pots and pans in the kitchen area in my classroom. I feel like the children like to play with items more when they know they are the real thing, stuff that they see their parents using.
When I was little
Play was supported and encouraged when I was little. Myself and my brothers were often sent outside to play and I loved being able to spend most of my childhood playing and imagining with my brothers and cousins. We did a lot of dress up and make believe play. I remember playing a game with my brother called lava. We would pretend the floor was lava and the bed was a boat. We would have to jump from the bed to other items on the floor that were safe areas. We would also wear our snow pants as lava gear and it would protect us. At such a young age we thought of this game and spent hours playing it, I love that our parents let us just be kids and have fun.
Play today
I think play is different today due to technology. Video games, tv, and the computer are taking children away from normal play. No longer do kids go outside for hours to play with their neighbors and friends, now they spend their time chatting with friends online or texting them. Children can hop on the Internet and play a game with their friend without leaving their house. And I think that sometime parents feel better about having their child inside playing video games, watching tv and on the Internet then letting them go outside and play, due to safety concerns. Not only that but when children are playing through electronics they become absorbed in it rarely talk and some parents may like this, because there child is being good and they can get stuff done. I also get really sad when the children in my center get upset if they are outside or say they are bored.
