My Connections to Play

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Play provides the ultimate curriculum for social, physical, and cognitive advancement

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(Wardle, F. n.d.).

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Play allows children to create and explore a world they can master, conquering their fears while practicing adult roles, sometimes in conjunction with other children or adult caregivers

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(.Ginsberg, K. 2007). When we engage in play, we are letting loose, and using our deepest imagination to manipulate our world. Here are a few images that I used to utilize on a family outing to the Beach:

These images represent the items I had many opportunities to utilize when we traveled to the Beach. I could spend hours and hours with just these three items. However, the water, sand, sand creatures, people, and bird life created even more endless opportunities to take advantage of. All I needed to enjoy my time at the Beach was my imagination and the natural environment around me. The cool breeze offered new and unique smells, while the water created beautiful waves, and an abundance of water to use to make sand castles, and swim in. The Beach was my playground as a child, and today as an adult. I now have the opportunity to take my children there and watch them do what I did when I played at the beach. My grandfather opened up many opportunities for me and my brother to engage in play. We took many trips to the park, beach, we traveled to Mexico, Texas, and Lakes, and Rivers. We had opportunities to play outside in the front and back yard as well. We had so much freedom as children. I remember taking my bicycle and riding around the neighborhood with my brother. We even used to travel for miles and explore different tree species, plants, and meet neighborhood children. We had no rules when we played, except basic life skills such as no fighting, stealing, staying out late, and especially not talking to strangers. These were not play based rules; they were just instilled upon us since birth. My grandfather gave us insights as to different names of plants, we planted our own garden, and we ate fruit and vegetables out of trees and gardens. He taught us how to enjoy ourselves outdoors by allowing us the time to explore and use our imagination. As I reminisce my past, I notice that I do not see play like I used to when I was a child. I barely even see children outside. Once in a while, I see children chasing each other in a neighbor’s yard, or a neighbor child playing a hand held gaming system. I feel that parents don’t have time to allow them to go outdoors, and the issue of safety due to a corrupt society. In my city, there have been ten shootings in one month. I understand the fear for children to be allowed outside. In my childhood, I had many life lessons as I had the opportunity to play outdoors. I had my share of bumps and bruises, which gave me the experience of trying to be careful not to fall, or how to take care of scrapes and cuts, I learned how to ride a bike, I can climb trees, I can grow a garden, I can cook, I know my weather patterns, I know smells of dirt, mud, sand, asphalt, rocks, worms, bugs, and various other animals and insects. Our young may not get the opportunity to enjoy the same freedom as we did, but I do hope that there are ways for them to learn and experience nature, science, discovery, and the ability to use their imagination as I did. The role of play is essential to learning life skills, the use of a creative mind, and opportunities to engage in a peace of mind and wonder. The role of play has created fulfillment in my life because of the many experiences that have taught me the things that I know today. Without it, I often wonder if I would have learned the skills that I know now. I know my Grandfather has contributed to these skills as well. But it was his allowance that let us venture out and explore that gave me the many benefits of motor development, physical, emotional, cognitive, and social experiences.

References Ginsberg, K. (2007). The importance of play in promoting healthy development and maintaining strong parent-child bonds. Pediatrics, 119(1), 182-191. Retrieved from (http://www.aap.org/pressroom/playfinal.pdf). Wardle, F. (n.d.). Play as curriculum. Retrieved August 1, 2010, from (http://www.earlychildhoodnews.com/earlychildhood/article_view.aspx?ArticleID=12 7).

Relationship Reflection

Relationship Reflection: Relationships are the whole reason why children become socialized and develop healthy interactions with people and peers. Good relationships are essential to supporting a child’s social development. A child who has developed a good relationship with his or her family, and others in society such as, teacher’s, doctors, and peers, can learn how to maintain friendships and gain a tremendous amount of information the world has to offer. Educators have long known that family involvement is vital to children’s success in school” (Souto-Manning, M. 2010). Children who have healthy support groups usually do better and school, or drop-out less. My personal web of relationships/ partnerships include: my boyfriend William, my 2 daughters (Christy and Sophia), my brother Richard, my Doctor and his Assistants, my Teachers, my Colleagues, my Church Pastor, my Friends, and my children’s Grandparents. Although the list can go on and on, I have developed a large network of trusted and dedicated professionals that I have learned from, gained knowledge from, and most of all…these professionals have made me what I am today. They have helped me in time of need, and offered their knowledge as a tool for me to utilize in my own life. It is from the wide range of important relationships that I have encountered and developed in my life that teaches me to be a good influence to everyone I meet. Here is a few of the supports in my life:

The first picture is one of my boyfriend of ten years, and our two daughters. These relationships are important to me because they are of my immediate family. Between the love me and my boyfriend share, we created two little girls whom I have developed a strong bond with. The bond I have with my girls is one of love, trust, devotion, dedication, and many other positive aspects of humanity. The love and partnership that I share with my boyfriend is similar, except that we are a relationship that we developed from friends. We did not create each other. But we certainly created a love for each other and our daughters. From that, it is our responsibility as parents to make sure that we teach our children right from wrong, important things that we know, give them love, and lead them into the right direction by helping them when they need it and offering our advice. In doing so, I can rest assured that my daughters can develop a sense of empathy towards others, and be confident in their decisions to make the right one’s without inflicting harm on others. The second picture is one of me and my baby girl. She is my youngest child. The relationship I have offered her is love, protection, care, guidance, and communication. I respond to her needs and teach her about her world around her. She is the whole reason I have a drive to make her world a better place. Moreover, my baby’s smiles, and her responses to my interactions shows me that she has love to offer me in return of my contribution of being a mother to her. Some insights that I have gained regarding challenges to developing and maintaining relationships are one’s in which we lose the loss of a loved one, or we find a dedicated teacher who touches our life, and then we move on to another grade in school and lose contact with that special teacher. Another challenge that parents face is the workforce has got them gone for long periods of time, and the relationships that they want to build with their children are torn between work and responsibilities of running the home. “In today’s fast-paced society, teachers and families face competing demands for their time, energy, and resources (Anderson & Sabatelli 2007). The workforce can sometimes make it difficult for parents to be involved in their child’s class, or to spend time reading to them, which can be discouraging for parents to try to spend quality time with their child. “For adults who work fulltime, it may be impossible to volunteer in their children’s classrooms” (Souto-Manning,M. 2010). Special characteristics that make these relationships partnerships are the ability to communicate, offer time, and offer healthy interactions. Also, by responding to a child’s needs, shows that we have formed a relationship of care and empathy. By working in collaboration with families, we can learn about their culture, their childrearing techniques, and their diverse contributions to society. Moreover, this strategy of forming healthy relationships with parents can better serve the children because they can form a trust for the teacher and feel comfortable with them. Lastly, by developing positive partnerships/relationships, we can better serve our duties as professionals in the early childhood field because children can come to a safe, guiding, nurturing, and fun environment to learn and play. Also, parents can feel comfortable in bringing their children to a safe environment and offer their wisdom and expertise. Lastly, the partnership of teacher and parent forms, which makes the duty of a teacher a whole lot easier. If everyone is happy, the children benefit. Because the teacher can focus on creating an environment that supports child development. References Anderson, S., & R. Sabatelli. (2007). Family interaction: A multigenerational perspective. 4th ed. Boston: Allyn & Bacon. Souto-Manning, M. (2010). Family involvement: Challenges to consider, strengths to build on. Young Children, 65(2), 82-88 Retreived from. (http://search.proquest.com.ezp.waldenulibrary.org/pqcentral/docview/197637257/fulltextPDF?accountid=14872).