Let's go fly a kite

One of the movies I grew up watching was Mary Poppins with Julie Andrews as the incredible fun-loving, yet proper Mary Poppins. I was absolutely convinced a spoonful of sugar would help any foul tasting medicine go down, even if my Mom was not so convinced! As I think back on my childhood, I can remember the freedom I had to go outside, play, and explore. Today, I want to focus on the idea of play in children’s lives. If we are ever going to connect with and help our kids become well-adjusted adults, it starts with getting back to the basics. 

The American Academy of Pediatrics has done extensive research (found here) on the developmental effects of play on kids. Basically, children’s brains develop by learning about their world through exploring around them, modeling roles they see adults doing, and growing their imagination through free, undirected play. Equally important is for adults to join in the play with the kids in their lives. Allowing kids to have the time and space to do all of this is critical to them becoming whole-person healthy people. 

So, from a practical standpoint, what can this look like in our everyday, often crazy busy lives? Here’s a few ideas: 

• Be protective of your calendar. Kids need down time just like adults do. If you structure your days and weeks to allow for free, unstructured time after school, day care, or running errands, you’ll be giving your kids the best gift you could give them. 
  
• Allow for unstructured play. Not everything has to be choreographed to perfection. In fact, the more imagination a child is able to use with their toys and games, the better! So, as hard as it can be to take a back seat and not interrupt with a “but that’s not how it really goes” comment, do your best to let the child in your life take lead on playing. So when asked if you’d like a mug of golf ball soup (true story!), reply with a resounding “Sure!”. 
  
• Embrace your inner child and join in. When the adults in their life join in on their play, a child’s development is enhanced so much. However, the key word there is join IN. Not directing the play. When your child invites you to play, it’s critical that you do so with an understanding of you are joining them in the world of play that they’ve created. Obviously, if they are doing something unsafe, please stop them. But if they’re simply racing you to the top of the slide to see who can race back down to the bottom, let them go, chase after them, and enjoy the giggles that will shortly follow. Let the child be the expert in play and you be the student. Who knows, maybe you’ll end up even flying kites!
  

One of my personal heroes is Mr. Fred Rogers. He was just such an incredible person! I want to end with one of his beliefs that I try very hard to remember. “Play is often talked about as if it were a relief from serious learning. But for children play is serious learning. Play is really the work of childhood." So, the next time someone scoffs at you for allowing your child the freedom to play, remember this. They are doing the serious work of childhood and we should be praising them for excelling at their job! 
Be well, 
JoEllen