I have been thinking a good deal about playing and learning. At two back-to-back conferences, I have spoken on this topic, so my musing continues.
Plato was perhaps the first to say that children should learn by playing. By compulsion you might make a child move through certain schooling steps, but that learning will seldom be permanent. I think experience shows Plato was right; our experience and recent research also tell us that children are not playing as much as they used to, and are perhaps trading away some important benefits and delights in exchange for… more screen time.
Here is a brief 13 minute video in which I recap what the research shows and what we already know. What will we do to make room once again for play?
Thank you so much for taking the time to post this encouraging video on the importance of children and play. I am deeply convicted and inspired to make changes in my home. In addition, I’m looking forward to reading the books you shared. One of the areas that I would really love to work on is assimilating more real life applications of math and science in our play. I appreciated the ideas you mentioned in the video. Any suggestions on quality resources to help this homeschooling mama? My children are 2, 7, and 12 years of age. Thank you for your time. 🙂
Dr. Perrin, YES! Thank you for sharing this video on the importance of play. Play is a beautiful and necessary part of childhood. I pray that every parent will give themselves and their children permission to play!
I’ve been thinking about this talk a lot since Cincinnati. I wrote a little about it here.