Professional Reading Bibliography

Student’s name
Lecturer’s name
course code
Date
Topic: Professional Reading Bibliography
Children play is a very vital and important part of a child’s growth in every aspect. It helps open up their minds, give them new ideas and relieve them from the normal stressful day-to-day activities. They become creative and exploratory, create rules that govern how they play, act out in their different forms of play. It is a great form of entertainment for children. If education was incorporated into plays, learning would be very easy for children. By creating plays that are entertaining to the children, they tend to remember that which they are being taught easily.
‘Play is deemed beneficial for all children’ (Isenberg & Quisemberry, 1988; Johnson, Christie & Yawkey, 1987; Piaget, 1962; Vygotsky, 1976; Wassermann, 1992). Even though most kindergarten and pre-kindergarten teachers do use play in their curriculum, the other stages of learning do not see play as essential. But in reality, play is very vital in children learning. Plays help children of all ages acquire social skills like resolving conflicts, negotiating, sharing and living peacefully with each other. It also helps them grow physically, mentally and even socially. Play even makes what seems hard to understand easy to remember. The mind set of being risk takers and the lack of fear of failure helps children become innovators.
Scott Kretchmar claimed that ‘the inability or unwillingness to play may have led to a ” play disability”‘(Kretchmar, 2012).

The thought is seconded by Oslin and Collier who suggest that the lack of play in the curriculum is due to instructors disability about cultural influence Oslin & Collier, 2012). The two also suggest incorporating play into the education system, to help in physically educating. Physical education curriculum and Physical Education Teachers Education programs should also have play. It has been noted that physical activities levels are on the decline, while as activities that are money-making like rock climbing gyms, yoga shops, fitness centers, skating parks are all on the rise while playing parks are empty all over. Although these activities are helpful, they still do not get to the level of play, the effect it had amongst children, the ability they had when knowing whether they had done wrong to others, how to settle a dispute in so many different ways without affecting their relationship.
Kerrie Bebie holds a stand on sports being over-emphasized in education today. Sports differ a lot with play on the basis that in sport, there are set rules to conform to, and are universal. While in play, the children set their rules, codes and mode of play. Even if the game might be universal, the rules vary from place to place. Sports tend to control the children, how they think they should play is not an option for them. This affects their performance when indulging in those sports. As much as there are a lot of resources to help these children become better athletes, that lack of passion because of the limitations by the rules makes lose interest in the sport. The constant monitoring and interference in children’s play is what takes out the fun and adventure in play, which is the case in sport.
But how did it get to this? Where did we completely ignore play and assumed it was not vital in our children’s curriculum? Our current form of education system has in a way greatly affected how teachers; parents and students interact. With the advancements in technology, the teachers no longer have to meet with the pupils or students, they however can interact by emails, skype or can face time. As much as technology is a good form of progress, with this form of interaction, you will never understand how someone feels about something because probably they are faking it whenever they take those few minutes to interact with you. Video games have again contributed to lack of play on our playgrounds. Children get to sit behind their tv screens or computer screen all day playing programmed games, games that are already made up of rules. This in a way affects how a child socializes with the other physically, because to some point they do not know how and what to say something whenever they are outside with no video games. Despite them getting to learn attributes like decision making while playing video games, they do not get to have exercises, which is vital in a child’s growth. We need to ensure that despite all our progress, we get to let our children explore and learn things for themselves whenever they are together. Exposing them to the world without technology to help them learn more and be creative so as to have something to do in case the technology is not available.
The way to change our curriculums to incorporate play without affecting our current schooling systems is by increasing the stipulates hours of free time or leisure activities during the early childhood development stages. Then, those teaching should lead in these sorts of play, be pacesetters for the children. And also having programs that still enable children to indulge in play, even during holidays and weekends, should also be established. Ensuring that children can interact with each other regardless of their background or schools they come from will help improve their attitude towards even sports. Then finally including letting parents interact with the children in those plays and sports. Teaching children sports in the early stages of growth will help create a passion in the sport, and might regain that interest later on in the future.
Creating new forms of physical activities and including them in these in the school activities to improve students skills. Ensuring that students take these activities by creating time for them in the system, without affecting the students free time. Teachers should also try and ensure the form of physical activities are friendly to the students. Ensuring that we create an environment that encourages the children to venture into sports and physical activities by erecting these amenities for them. ‘Orienteering incorporates science and geography concepts that can enhance a lesson. “Compass games are interesting, educational and easy to implement. I have used them with kids as young as eight on up to college students. (Sension-Hall, 2011,p. 22). These form of corporations of gives education as form of excitement and creates a tie between the teachers and students, due to the frequent interactions. Being directly involved in outdoor activities, teaching them older versions of sports they are not familiar with, and even joining in will be beneficial for both parties, and can even teach those adults new sports. Ensuring indoor activities do not take more time than the outdoors activities to avoid lack of exercise for the children, and giving them an outdoor adventure will help broaden they thinking and innovative skills.
All these writers lead to one thing, child play and how it has to be incorporated into the current education system. They have also given suggestions on how they think it can be incorporated, without having to interfere with the set system. They all want physical education to be seen as an important lesson as mathematics or science, and the teachers who need to teach them should have the required qualifications. Teachers should also be innovative, and not only follow what is set for them by the curriculum but also come up with ways in which they can help improve their relationship with their students or pupils to help them improve academically while still gaining skills in other fields, including sports. All articles again conform to one thing: let the children play on their rules. Let them choose what games to play, or even better, let them invent games. Avoid interfering with their play, do not tell them what not to do while playing and avoid limiting them while they are in play. Monitoring them from a distance is what is suggested of parents from these writers, and ensuring that whenever they come home from school, they at least spend some time outside with their friends, or at a play ground, or even outside the house. They will come up with something worthwhile and constructive.
Sources and citations.
Isenberg, J. & Quisenberry, N. L. (1988). Play: A necessity for all children. Childhood Education, 64. 138-145.
Johnson, J.E., Christie, J.F., & Yawkey, T.D.(987). play and early childhood development. Glenview, IL: ScottForesman.
Kretchmar, S. (2012). Play disabilities: A reason for physical educators to rethink the boundaries of special education. Quest, 64, 79-86.
Oslin, J., & collier, C. (2012). Rethinking the boundaries. Quest, 64, 87-91.
Vygotsky, L. S. (1976). Play and its role in the mental development of the child.