we believe

 
old-fashioned play builds serious skills - click here for the npr articlehttp://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=19212514


free play is essential to a child’s development

recess was created because we believe kids need play & adults need play  research shows that play fosters crucial social skills (not to mention imagination, creativity, and self-discovery) play offers an ideal opportunity for parents to engage fully with their children play allows children to find out about themselves, their abilities, their interests and the contribution they can make. recess is space to play. recess is 3200 sq ft of free play all the time come when the mood strikes. no waiting for your scheduled class time, or day of the week. what type of play will your child be drawn to today? there are a range of play opportunities at recess, including pretend play, active play, imaginative play & more. recess gives children the freedom to play creatively and allow them to experience risk, discovery, challenge and excitement. here are a variety of resources about the importance, & benefits of, play. web resources

The American Academy of Pediatrics notes, “Play is essential to development because it contributes to the cognitive, physical, social, and emotional well-being of children and youth. Play also offers an ideal opportunity for parents to engage fully with their children” (full study and review can be found at here). Early Childhood and Parenting Collaborative Web Site: The new repository for ERIC/EECE materials 
http://ecap.crc.uiuc.edu

Family Education: Parenting tips and articles, family activities, and expert advice
http://www.familyeducation.com

Games Kids Play: Children’s games, rules for playground games, jump rope rhymes, circle games, etc. 
http://www.gameskidsplay.net

The Good Toy Group: A site showcasing 58 independent toy retailers who produce an online catalog featuring toys chosen by them on the basis of creative play value, cultural sensitivity, and nonviolence that promote happy, healthy childhoods.
http://www.goodtoygroup.com

Hamill Family Play Zoo: The idea behind the two-acre Play Zoo is that children need to touch, explore, build, and do. Touching live animals, planting a garden, examining animal X-rays, finger painting with mud, searching for bugs, exploring a stream, and building animal homes are all in a day’s play. The goal is to foster in children a connection with nature as they have fun.
http://www.brookfieldzoo.org/pgpages/pagegen.34.aspx

The Institute for Play: Founded by retired psychiatrist Stuart Brown, who writes: “What the Institute for Play is offering is a mix of information and resources to give you a deeper understanding of the nature and importance of play, and connections to helpful people, organizations, and information. We will also address play's role in various arenas of human endeavor, such as education, violence prevention, community building, and our favorite—play for its own sake.” Offers a video series that has appeared on PBS, The Power of Play.
http://www.instituteforplay.com

International Association for the Child’s Right to Play – US Branch: An international, interdisciplinary, non-governmental organization whose purpose is to protect, preserve, and promote children’s play as a fundamental human right of all children around the world. Considers play to be the only means possible to ensure the maximum development of each individual and the societies in which they live. Presents and works for implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Their site gives information on organizing a Play Day in your community. Publishes the PlayRights newsletter
http://www.ipausa.org

Kaboom: Developing partnerships among individuals, civic and community groups, and businesses and foundations, toward building safe, accessible, fun and much-needed community playgrounds.
http://www.kaboom.org

Kid Source: Articles of interest: Learning Through Play, Parental Involvement in Play, Toy Selection and Buying Guide for different ages
http://www.kidsource.com

Lemelson Center/Smithsonian Institution: The Invention at Play national traveling exhibit explores the connection between play and the creative impulse of inventors. Includes stories of inventors, discussions on play, great quotes on play, and little video clips such as one on “Play for Play’s Sake.”
http://invention.smithsonian.org/home/ 
Natural Learning Initiative: Robin Moore at N.C. State University is director of the Natural Learning Initiative. The group promotes the importance of the natural environment in the daily experience of all children through environmental design, action research, education and dissemination of information; to help communities create stimulating places for play, learning, and environmental education
http://www.naturalearning.org

National Center for Infants, Toddlers and Families: A good downloadable booklet: The Power of Play: Learning Through Play from Birth to Three 
http://www.zerotothree.org

Play Wales: Play Wales/Chwarae Cymru is the national organization for children's play in Wales. It is an independent charity funded by the Welsh Assembly Government. Its aim is to act as a champion for children's play; and to increase awareness and understanding of the critical importance of play in children's development. “It is our belief that play which is freely chosen, personally directed and intrinsically motivated is vital in a child's development.”
http://www.playwales.org.uk/

Playing for Keeps: A national non-profit coalition of parents, toy industry leaders, scholars, educators, cultural leaders, and others dedicated to the optimal development of children by supporting, promoting, and protecting the role of play in our culture.
http://www.playingforkeeps.org

Street Play: Lists of events, activities, and information on street games.
http://www.streetplay.com

Touch the Future: Comprehensive web site on child and human development, based on the work of Joseph Chilton Pearce and others. Information on how to get a 90-minute video, “Discovering the Intelligence of Play,” from an invitational symposium on play with Joseph Chilton Pearce, Fred Donaldson, James Prescott, Stuart Brown, and Michael Mendizza.
http://www.ttfuture.org

TRUCE: Teachers Resisting Unhealthy Children’s Entertainment: An organization of early childhood professionals that works to promote a positive play environment for children. TRUCE produces written materials such as the Toy Action Guide and Media Violence and Children: A Call to Action . As a small, grassroots organization, it believes that toys should enhance children’s natural ability to actively engage in imaginative and meaningful play.
http://www.truceteachers.org

Center for Screen-Time Awareness (formerly TV Turn-off Network): Grassroots organization that sponsors the annual TV Turn-off Week each April. It offers many practical suggestions for alternatives to screen time.
http://www.tvturnoff.org
 articles 
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s excellent series on play, by Karen MacPherson: “Development Experts Say Children Suffer Due to Lack of Unstructured Fun,” Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2002. http://www.post-gazette.com/lifestyle/20021001childsplay1001fnp3.asp

“Creative Play Makes Better Problem Solvers,” Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2002.
http://www.post-gazette.com/lifestyle/20021002childsplay3.asp

“Experts Call Unstructured Play Essential to Children’s Growth,” Thursday, Oct. 3, 2002.
http://www.post-gazette.com/lifestyle/20021003childsplay3.asp

“Play Essential for All Children,” position paper of the Association for Childhood Education International. 
http://www.acei.org/playpaper.htm

“Speaking Out for Play-Based Learning: Becoming an Effective Advocate for Play in the Early Childhood Classroom,” by Susan Oliver and Edgar Klugman, Jan/Feb, 2004.
http://www.playingforkeeps.org/site/documents/speakingout.pdf

“Resources for Managing Common Play Challenges,” by Susan Oliver and Edgar Klugman, Sept/Oct, 2003. 
http://www.playingforkeeps.org/site/documents/play_problems.pdf

“What’s New in Play Research?” by D. Fromberg, from CCIE, Issue #118, p.53-56.
http://www.ccie.com

“Rethinking Children’s Play: How Are Today’s Toys Changing the Way Your Kids Play and What They Learn.” 
http://fun.familyeducation.com/outdooractivities/play/35262.html

“Hand-Made Minds: The Real Meaning of Hands-On Education,” by Frank Wilson, Waldorf Research Bulletin, Fall 1999.
http://www.waldorflibrary.org/Journal_Articles/RB5101.pdf
 
books
A Child’s Work: The Importance of Fantasy Play. Vivian Gussin Paley. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2004. Paley goes inside classrooms around the globe to explore the stunningly original language of children in their role-playing and storytelling. Drawing on their own words, she examines how this natural mode of learning allows children to construct meaning in their worlds, meaning that carries through into their adult lives. Proof that play is the work of children, this enchanting book will inspire and instruct teachers and parents as well as point to a fundamental misdirection in today’s educational programs and strategies.

Children, Play and Development. Fergus P. Hughes. Needham Heights, MA: Allyn & Bacon, 1999. Hughes offers a comprehensive look at children's play from birth to adolescence. Stressing the developmental and psychological importance of play, he discusses the relationship of play to the physical, social, intellectual, and emotional growth of the child.

The House of Make-Believe: Children’s Play and the Developing Imagination. Dorothy G. and Jerome L. Singer. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1992. A classic from two of play’s greatest researchers and advocates. The Singers theorize that children who have supportive persons, places, times, and props for imaginative play develop long-term adult creativity.

The Hurried Child. David Elkind. Reading, MA: Perseus, 2001. Discusses how parents, schools, media, and new technologies are threatening the modern concept of childhood. As antidotes to these stressful pressures, he supports Piaget’s developmental ideas and other philosophies that view childhood as a worthy and vital stage of life.

A Life Like Mine: How Children Live Around the World. Dorling Kindersley, in association with UNICEF. New York: DK Publishing, 2002. Introduces the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child to elementary school students and teachers. A section on the right to play illustrates cultural differences and presents the common practices that define play for all children.

The Power of Play. David Elkind. To be released January 30, 2007 by Da Capo Lifelong Books. Amazon.com describes this forthcoming book: “In modern childhood, free, unstructured play time is being replaced more and more by academics, lessons, competitive sports, and passive, electronic entertainment.… The Power of Play suggests ways to restore play’s respected place in children’s lives, at home, at school, and in the larger community. In defense of unstructured “down time,” it encourages parents to trust their instincts and resist the promise of the wide and dubious array of educational products on the market geared to youngsters.”

Reclaiming Childhood: Letting Children Be Children in Our Achievement-Oriented Society. William Crain. NewYork: Henry Holt Owl Books, 2003. Child-development expert William Crain argues that the greatest gifts that we can bestow on our children include a strong sense of self, an enthusiasm for learning, the ability to think independently and creatively, and the confidence to explore the world. Rather than trying to control and direct children’s learning, we should give them opportunities to develop their natural artistic, poetic, dramatic, and linguistic capacities, and to form deep bonds with the natural world.

Supporting Play: Birth Through Age Eight. Dorothy Justus Sluss. New York: Thomson
Delmar Learning, 2004. Helping young people learn through play is the focus of this text, aimed at teachers and future teachers.

Your Active Child: How to Boost Physical, Emotional, and Cognitive Development Through Age-Appropriate Activity. Rae Pica. New York: McGraw-Hill Contemporary Books, 2003. Pica argues that many children fall into one of two categories: either almost entirely inactive, or spending most of their free time in highly structured, overly stressful competitive sports that are age-inappropriate. Pica recommends age-appropriate activities and play based on the stage of your child’s development, from infancy to preadolescence.

Your Child at Play (a series of age-organized books). Marilyn Segal. New York: NewMarket Press, 1998. “It is a rare series for parents of infants and young children that manages to answer their mounting questions while providing the best expert advice in a warm and accessible format. These terrific books are handsome, engaging, and chock full of practical knowledge about childcare and guidance—what’s more, they provide numerous ways for parents and children to have fun as they explore each other’s worlds.” —Edward Zigler, Sterling Professor of Psychology, Yale University.http://aappolicy.aappublications.org/cgi/reprint/pediatrics;119/1/182.pdfhttp://ecap.crc.uiuc.edu/http://www.familyeducation.com/http://www.gameskidsplay.net/http://www.goodtoygroup.com/http://www.brookfieldzoo.org/pgpages/pagegen.34.aspxhttp://www.instituteforplay.com/http://www.ipausa.org/http://www.kaboom.org/http://www.kidsource.com/http://invention.smithsonian.org/home/http://www.naturalearning.org/http://www.zerotothree.org/http://www.playwales.org.uk/http://www.recessurbanrecreation.com/kids/www.playingforkeeps.orghttp://www.streetplay.com/http://www.ttfuture.org/http://www.truceteachers.org/http://www.tvturnoff.org/http://www.post-gazette.com/lifestyle/20021001childsplay1001fnp3.asphttp://www.post-gazette.com/lifestyle/20021002childsplay3.asphttp://www.post-gazette.com/lifestyle/20021003childsplay3.asphttp://www.acei.org/playpaper.htmhttp://www.playingforkeeps.org/site/documents/speakingout.pdfhttp://www.playingforkeeps.org/site/documents/play_problems.pdfhttp://www.ccie.com/http://fun.familyeducation.com/outdooractivities/play/35262.htmlhttp://www.waldorflibrary.org/Journal_Articles/RB5101.pdfshapeimage_4_link_0shapeimage_4_link_1shapeimage_4_link_2shapeimage_4_link_3shapeimage_4_link_4shapeimage_4_link_5shapeimage_4_link_6shapeimage_4_link_7shapeimage_4_link_8shapeimage_4_link_9shapeimage_4_link_10shapeimage_4_link_11shapeimage_4_link_12shapeimage_4_link_13shapeimage_4_link_14shapeimage_4_link_15shapeimage_4_link_16shapeimage_4_link_17shapeimage_4_link_18shapeimage_4_link_19shapeimage_4_link_20shapeimage_4_link_21shapeimage_4_link_22shapeimage_4_link_23shapeimage_4_link_24shapeimage_4_link_25shapeimage_4_link_26shapeimage_4_link_27

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