PlayIsTheWork.com takes as its name the famous maxim of the great Swiss developmental psychologist Jean Piaget. “Play is the work of children,” he wrote, and for years this wisdom formed the foundation of a balanced approach to child-rearing and education!
At some point in the last decade, however, other voices started to change the tone of our thinking about childhood and pushed play to the margins. The results have been troubling: children are overstressed and overscheduled, and parents are suffering under unreasonable expectations and a pervasive sense of guilt. Too much of childhood has been taken over by preparations for adulthood–to the point that young kids’ afternoons are being scheduled with an eye toward college admissions. If it were not so harmful to parents and kids alike, it would be funny!
We know that so many parents and kids want to “play more and worry less.” This blog is a way for a group of parents to talk about how we’re putting play back at the center of our lives as parents–so that our children can do the work they must do. If we want our children to become healthy, inquisitive, social beings who enjoy the good things in life and are resilient when faced with setbacks, we must let them learn through experimenting with their world. We need to encourage children to connect the dots on their own so they can be independent creative thinkers. If this were as easy as it sounds, we wouldn’t need a blog to talk about it!
This blog was started by Sam Reich-Dagnen, who spends a lot of time thinking about these issues as the co-founder, with her husband Johnny, of
Braincandy. Braincandy is a Seattle based multi-media company whose mission is to create enriching, entertaining content that helps young children learn as they more fully experience the world around them. Sam and Johnny believe in creating content that motivates children rather than pacify them and stimulates them to actively engage with what they hear, see, feel, smell and taste!
Most of the contributors are moms who balance busy personal and professional lives around those of our children. Writing in a number of
categories, we try to talk about the larger issues, but at times our posts veer toward the specific and even the mundane. Just like a well-balanced meal needs some variety, we think a good blog needs a range of material!
So read and enjoy, and join us at the table with your comments!