Playtime in Peril
Playtime in Peril was the title of an article written by Lea Winerman, and appearing in the September issue of the Monitor, a publication of the American Psychological Association. It really caught my eye. So much in our world is in peril…jobs, income, housing, marriage, health insurance. But play, how can that be in peril. Does play require government funding? Do we need both House and Senate approval to let our kids play? It turns out, it is our own fault. It is not that we don’t know what kids really need, it is that we don’t use what we know. A study by the Alliance for Childhood points out that kindergartners in New York and Los Angeles spend nearly 3 hours per day on reading, math and test preparation and less than one half hour each day on “choice time” or play. All our research continues to point out that children learn best in their early years through play. It is through play that they get to figure things out on their own. Play lets them pretend to be anything they want and practice new skills without constant adult interference. Playing dress-up, building with blocks, painting, playing with your Tupperware, drawing, blowing bubbles, sandbox or water play, are all ways that help our kids learn about life and survival. In fact, a study by Kathy Hirsh-Pasek, a child development researcher at Temple University found that there were no differences in academic achievement by first grade between children who had attended academic preschools vs those who had gone to more play oriented programs. However, she found that the kids that went to academic preschools were more anxious.
I have never seen so many anxious young kids in over 20 years as a practicing psychologist. Parents are so worried that their kids achieve that they keep throwing facts at them. They seem to think the most critical adult skills, reading, math and writing, require early and intense instruction. Creativity, critical thinking, problem solving, tolerance and the ability to learn from failure are all skills that can best be learned through play.
We justify hours of time on the computer and educational television as great learning experiences. They certainly can be…but, in moderation. Studies suggest that kids should only be utilizing ”electronics” for 2 hours per day. Each summer, my husband and I take our grandchildren and have what has come to be known as Grandma Camp. We have a blast. This summer, my husband took out some of his erector sets that he played with for hours on end as a child and is now collecting.The older boys, ages 9 and 12 spent hours building a working crane. They loved it. Sure, they needed some help. But they were able to work together, experiment, make some mistakes, figure out how to fix it and finish a great project. They were playing. But, they were learning about structural mechanics, team work, learning from mistakes and modifying approach. We spent our days playing outside with water hoses and water guns, collecting shells and snails at the beach, baking, playing games and very little time on TV or the computer. We read stories together every night. In short, we played…a lot! It was fun and I know we all learned a lot, especially about time together and love.
Filed under: Children, Lifestyle & Behaviors, Parenting, Stress
