A Time to Remember

Play…the way it touched my life

As I reminisce upon my childhood memories play was an enormous aspect of it. I remember growing up with my 3 sisters, one younger and one older (the middle child) of the litter. My sisters and I always played with each other in the field, climbing apple and plum trees, or building mud pies. In addition, my dad built me a little shed house with a black chalk board, 6 desks, and a bag of white chalk. I would line up my adoption dolls up and know that I was teaching- you couldn’t tell me nothing. Then I would worry my friend s to be my pupils. Often times, they would with a smile, sometimes the guys would be grumble, but they would reluctantly come if I told them I would play freeze tag or kick ball two times in a row. Of course, I said yes!

Also on the weekends, I got the opportunity to do what I truly loved and that was hang out with my cousins-Rashad and Courtney. At this time, I could pretend I was Superwoman in the league of Super friends…it was so magical and my imagination would be free to run wild!  After playing super friends, we would switch to the “Miami Dolphins” and I was the quarter back… It was truly a time of self- exploration, half the time- I was unsure if I wanted to be a tom boy or act like a princess like in my fairy tale books I read.

I defiantly feel that play helped me build upon the social skills that I have today. I enjoy being around people, and having fun.  I am open, warm and loving…perfect- no, I am just me… I truly enjoy adding a little joy into the lives of others.

            Therefore, knowing the person that I have become, I can only imagine that as a child, that I was just a mass of intuition and exploration…always on the go, moving and shaking…I am sure I was would’ve been a great example of a child that could confirm the findings for Dr. Alison Gopnik on her thoughts about child development. Like in the video presentation, a conversation about Child Development, Dr. Alison Gopnik stated, “Play is a time of discovery and exploration- openness to the things around them-a pretending of the imagination”. A time to freely explore the world around them- this is called a theory of the mind.

Joy Overflowing, 

April

References:

 Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2013a). A conversation about child development [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.