"There's nothing like a day in the backyard to make a really nasty bathtub ring"
Author: Dee Ann Stewart from "What Spock Forgot"
"Grandparents and grandchildren are God's gift to each other."
Author: Unknown
I spent many hours, days, weeks, months, and years on my bike. Trips to the corner store, down to neighbors and just riding up and down the big hill. It didn't matter the color of the bike nor the brand.
When I wasn't on my bike I was working on our 'fort', made of scrap wood, decorated with homemade curtains and stump benches. It was a place that we imagined as our second home. So much creativity went in to that one-of-a-kind space that the memories are stored forever.
* My play was supported by my parents, both encouraging me to 'be outside' and the neighbors who knocked on my door each day.
* My parents set simple guidelines that encouraged my creativity in play. They didn't come up with my plans, they didn't monitor every move I made, nor did they fill all of my time with extra curricular activities.
* Living in a community where all of the families seemed to grasp the same concept that my own parents did, one that allowed children to be children. To be dirty, out after dark, and building something meant it was a good day in the neighborhood.
Play today looks so much different, the culture has changed. Is it better or worse? I'm not sure that it's that simple. Lets look at some realities: more parents work(both), technology has skyrocketed, organized activities have increased, etc. Just these few named differences can account for our disconnected and hectic lives. Free time seems to be reduced at all turns, whether school or home. In our schools, specials as they are called, are the first to go. There seemed to be a time when 'specials' where a part of the bigger picture. Now we need to have a movement, such as, the fight against obesity to teach physical activity.
Some of my fondest memories are the many hours that I spent in the woods behind my house, on the farm at my grandmas, and at the neighbors field with a mit in my hand. All of these moments created, by Heather......
It seems we may have had similar childhoods at play. I made some of the same points you did in my blog post. I think society and culture have changed as well...as have their expectations and perspectives of what play really encompasses for a child. I miss my fort.
ReplyDeleteIt is true that society has changes as has the view on play. I often wonder how a generation who grew up as we did and loved outside and spend SO much time playing and getting dirty, now have children who never get to have those types of experiences. I am over joyed when I hear parents say that they took their child out of an activity so they could have more play time at home. I think parents really need to do that more for their children. Sounds like you had a wonderful childhood.
ReplyDeleteI'm new at this parenting thing, so it's hard for me to compare myself to parent's of the past. I do know that when I go to the park and allow my son to play with sticks, splash and throw rocks in puddles, and simply get dirty, I'm often met with other mom's getting upset their child has joined in. I respect the beliefs of other families and try to teach my son that not everyone plays the same. Deep down, I really wish these kids could get dirty. Thank you for the bathtub ring quote.
ReplyDeleteHeather, I am still an advid biker and loved it as a child, you're so right; all my parents had to say was 'you all go outside and play' there was no script, very little if no parent involvement but somehow our parents knew where we were and if we did anything that was considered 'bad' the neighbors would get us quickly back on course. Children today don't know how to 'play'. It has been my experience that if you tell a child to go out and 'play' they really don't know what you're talking about. We played rock teacher that was a game using the steps of our front porch when we couldn't go any further than the porch. We caught bugs, played marbles, rode bikes, play hop-scotch, jumped rope, the list goes on and on. I miss hearing the sound of children playing and laughing and negotiating and building relationships. Am I old fashioned or are our children missing something?
ReplyDeletehello Heather,
ReplyDeleteWhat fun it must have been to have a fort! We ran all day and played hard during the summer. I think that is why it is so hard for me to work during the summer. I try to copy as much of my childhood experiences with my children as I can. When we do homework together we try to make it as painless as possible. I give them a part of my world and they give me a part of theirs! Learning how to play some computer games!