From the FREEP

The Importance of Play

Dear Families and Friends,

There is a growing body of research that suggests that our children's lives are out of whack. They play too little, sleep too little, and are programmed and hurried too much. Recess is being eliminated, kindergartens and preschools are becoming increasingly academic, after school activities are routinely program- and adult-driven, and children are spending more time in front of TV's and computers. These trends are having a profound impact on the social, emotional and cognitive development of our children.

A new clinical report recently issued by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), The Importance of Play in Promoting Healthy Child Development and Maintaining Strong Parent-Child Bonds, http://www.aap.org/pressroom/playFINAL.pdf, highlights the consequences of these practices. The report explores the factors that have changed the routines of childhood, and offers some things for families, schools and pediatricians to consider as we all work to support our children's healthy development. The report goes on to extol the virtues of play in healthy brain development as well as the need for children to have more time to play, create, reflect and decompress. It states, "Play is integral to the academic environment. It ensures that the school setting attends to the social and emotional development of children as well as their cognitive development. It has been shown…even to enhance children's learning readiness, learning behaviors, and problem solving skills."

For SRV this is a confirmation of our long held beliefs about the virtues of play, choice and child directed exploration. We see these practices as ways to learn how to work in groups, to share, to negotiate, to solve conflicts, and to gain self advocacy skills. They give children authentic opportunities to practice decision-making skills, discover their own areas of interest, develop competencies, confidence and the resiliency they will need to face challenges.

The Alliance for Childhood, www.allianceforchildhood.org, an advocacy group for children, further endorses this stance. Their Call to Action on the Education of Young Children lobbies for a reversal of education policies that emphasize increased formal instruction time and decreased time for child-initiated play. As Joan Almon, president of the Alliance says, "The AAP has done children and families a great service with this report. When children play, family life is enriched and children learn more deeply. Everyone concerned with the well being of children should read the report and take it to heart."

We hope this growing body of research will help educate parents and influence policy makers about the importance of play at home and in schools. Please take a few minutes to read the report; it is clear, well written and quite compelling. Our children need our support.

In partnership,
Carlye Nelson Major

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