The benefits of play are immense across all ages, research shows
hechingerreport.orgSaved by Laura Pike Seeley
The benefits of play are immense across all ages, research shows
When a child plays, he learns the skills that make it possible to cope with the unexpected. If you deprive children of those challenges, as they grow up they will feel panicked and unable to cope a lot of the time. They don’t feel they are competent, or can make things happen without older people guiding them. Haidt argues this is one reason why an
... See moreJohann Hari • Stolen Focus: Why You Can't Pay Attention--and How to Think Deeply Again
The wonderful convenience of city sidewalks is an important asset to children too. Children are at the mercy of convenience more than anyone else, except the aged. A great part of children’s outdoor play, especially after they start school, and after they also find a certain number of organized activities (sports, arts, handcrafts or whatever else
... See moreJane Jacobs • The Death and Life of Great American Cities
A brilliant 2015 essay by the economist Steven Horwitz argued that free play prepares children for the “art of association” that Alexis de Tocqueville said was the key to the vibrancy of American democracy; he also argued that its loss posed “a serious threat to liberal societies.” A generation prevented from learning these social skills, Horwitz w... See more
The Atlantic • Why the Past 10 Years of American Life Have Been Uniquely Stupid
Play expands our minds in ways that allow us to explore: to germinate new ideas or see old ideas in a new light. It makes us more inquisitive, more attuned to novelty, more engaged. Play is fundamental to living the way of the Essentialist