“It might reasonably be maintained that the true object of all human life is play. Earth is a task garden; heaven is a playground. To be at last in such secure innocence that one can juggle with the universe and the stars, to be so good that one can treat everything as a joke — that may be, perhaps, the real end and final holiday of human souls.” -G.K. Chesterton
Education is play! This is pretty obvious when we’re talking about little kids and play-based preschools. But what if play-based education spread into the teen years as well? Adulthood? Playing not as “leisure” but playing as intentionally interacting with your environment and new ideas. Using the natural curiosity that God has given us and looking at His world as a laboratory. What happens when I…. ?? Play is looking around at things and wondering what they would say if they were alive. What else could this be used for? Formulating scenarios and story lines and seeing where it takes you. Kids are so good at this, but then somewhere our society tells us that that kind of play is child-ish and we lose our ability to imagine.
Let your kids play and play a lot! I’ve noticed though this type of play has a way of making small or large disasters in your home which is why it can be nerve-wracking for parents. When they mix the stuffed animals with the Hot Wheels with the Monopoly pieces then they grab your measuring cups from your kitchen as part of the fun. It’s putting things together that don’t normally go together and seeing what happens. Some of the best stuff is invented and learned and figured out when we’re there just to play!
I hope you and your kids have had more time to play together lately! Real play, where you’re not sure what the rules are or where the game is going to go or what the game is even about. 😂 Play pretend. Make the stuffed animals talk. Let the big kids play, too. Even when it doesn’t count for anything. Nothing is getting done, boxes aren’t getting checked.
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