Wendy Newby - Have I asked the right question?: July 2012

Saturday, July 21, 2012

My Connections to Play

“Thinking is messy, and deep thinking is really messy.” –Alfie Kohn, 2008

Kohn, A. (2008). Progressive education: Why it’s hard to beat, but also hard to find. Retrieved from http://www.alfiekohn.org/teaching/progres sive.htm

“School isn’t only to prepare for the future. It is their life and they must have a good day every day.” Salla Korpela, 2011

Korpela, S. (2011). A day in the life of Stromberg School. Retrieved from http://www.finland.fi/Public/default.aspx?contentid=162937&nodeid=41807&culture=in-US

My parents let me play outside for hours. I could walk to neighbors, ride my tricycle around the block and we often had lots of kids in the yard. When the street lights came on I had to be in the house. We knew all the neighbors within three or four blocks of the house and I knew how to get places and get home. I was reflecting on games then and now, with coworkers. I think I probably knew nearly twenty ways to play tag, wall ball and Chinese jump rope. And all of the rules could be altered at the beginning of the game.

My children have two working parents and we live in a larger city where most parents in the neighborhood work. They had lots of friends in childcare, but only saw neighbor children on the weekends. They used their at-home time to unwind from group care, and enjoy playing alone with their toys and ideas. For my middle child, she would spend hours with figure toys, playing out stories in the couch cushions, end tables and small boxes that made up her make-believe world. The youngest was very sensory in her exploration. She gave things baths, even the guinea pigs in the toilet. She applied make-up and loved to cut hair. They did not play outside like I had when growing up; probably because I didn’t make the time to play in the yard with them.

The best times with my children when they were young was camping in the woods at the beach. The unstructured time together camping created play opportunities to explore trails. The play included imagining fantastic adventures while hiking through tall trees with no buildings in sight and rickety foot bridges and having to climb over large rocks were wonderful play times together. It was great fun to let them lead me through the trees and tell me the story of our adventure. We continue to enjoy the feeling of abandon and relief when we go to the beach and can spend hours listening to the waves, walking, looking a rocks and shells, and using them to make sand castles or drift wood forts. David Elkind explains “self-initiated play nourishes the child’s curiosity, imagination, and creativity, and these abilities are like muscles-if you don’t use them, you lose them.”

Reference

Elkind, D. (2008) The power of play: Learning what come naturally. Retrieved from http://www.journalofplay.org/sites/www.journalofplay.org/files/pdf-articles/1-1-article-elkind-the-power-of-play.pdf

Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Thank you, Tom Hunter

The Children's Hearts

Listen and be reminded of our collective responsibility to the next generation.

http://www.tomhunter.com/mp3/The%20Children's%20Hearts.m3u

Monday, July 2, 2012

Play to Learn

The Children's Museum of Tacoma and Play to Learn groups help parents understand the value of play.

Personal Childhood Web

Joanie Peterson, my mother, was very engaged in my life from birth. I was the oldest and the only child until I was five. I was loved,my mother spent time with me by including me in whatever activities needed to be done. I remember the old tile floor in the kitchen that had to be waxed regularly. When the wax dried, my mother would give me an old towel to stand on and she would put on music and we would dance the twist until the tiles were buffed. My mother was finishing her bachelor degree in psychology and English during my first three years. I had the opportunity to meet lots of people in a community of shared values. I had time to play uninterrupted and my play was very creative and complex, with hours outside. I was read to and the value of learning was instilled in me early, but not in a competitive way, to be recognized as the best, but in a very personal way. Was I giving the task or the skill my best effort? Her approach to parenting developed intrinsic motivation in me. I am a great team player, motivated and satisfied to make sure the team does well. The measure of achievement is the level to which I tried my best. I can take a risk to take on a new challenge, because I know my mother will always love me. I value personal responsibility.

Rev. Merton Peterson, my father, was finishing seminary and pastoring his first church when I was born. I remember sitting on his lap, watching him type, helping fold bulletins, turning the handle on the old mimeograph machine, and going on home visits with him, when he needed to visit families from the church. We did not have material wealth, but I never felt poor We had enough that we could share. My did believed in me, when there was something I needed to do or learn he always spoke as though I had already mastered the task. I believe he spoke with confidence, because he has prayed for me every day of my life. Being a pastor's child means you learn manners, expectations and hospitality very early. We had lots of company. I loved giving up my bedroom and sleeping in a sleeping bag so the missionaries could have my room when they visited. I would listen to stories of their experiences in different countries and how they would help build homes and schools and grow crops wile they shared that Jesus loved them. I share my family's faith in God and the value that people are more important than things.

My extended family did not live close to me as I was growing up. But my grandmothers and aunt were prolific letter writers. We visited family every holiday, making holidays feel very special. I would listen to the adults share stories about family and friends. I knew that family were there for each other. My great-great grandparents were homesteaders. There was a strong sense of work ethic practiced. There were ranchers and there were farmers. It takes commitment and self determination to make it work. The entire family has to help to get the cattle in or harvest the crops. I remember the first time I was allowed to go on a cattle drive. I was probably seven. The strong connection to aunts, uncles and cousins as we spent the day on horseback gathering the cattle that were scattered among the trees and meadows in the foothills was exhilarating—I belonged, I was given worthwhile work. The farming family was an even stronger influence on my work ethic. When we visited the farm there was always tasks I could participate in: picking fruits and vegetables to can or freeze for my families use and when I got older picking melons or driving a tractor. It was part of being a member of my family. My family values hard work and integrity.

The church community provided a foundation of belonging and strength in conviction. Looking back I can appreciate that those families made sacrifices to make I had what I needed. The children were my friends, we could discuss the roles we were in and decisions we faced from a shared set of values. I never felt alone. As a community we looked out for each other. The community demonstrated living the values they held.

School Environment, Most people cannot imagine going to a school that houses children from kindergarten through senior high in the same building. Still the school community had enough diversity of values that it was a great place to have my values challenged and for me to exercise the decisions to stand true to my values. With only thirteen in my graduate class, but still the roles and functions of any school, there was so much opportunity to try out many different tasks. There were sports, student council officers, music, drama and clubs. I tried it all, because in a school that small everyone needs to get involved to have enough participants. My work ethic and integrity rewarded me with responsibility and opportunities. The most unusual was a flight class to learn to be a pilot, which included flight hours in a small plane. In the state I was raised, schools were the hub of activity for rural communities. Everyone came to all the events. People valued being together.