EDUC-6163-Week 2 Blog Assignment

Hello to my fellow EDUC 6163 Colleagues!

          As we begin our researching journey throughout this course, I am going into the process open-minded and looking forward to growing as an early childhood professional!  For my first subtopic with "School Readiness", I have chosen to focus on the importance of play for young children.  The main reason I have chosen this subtopic is because of my experiences within the field. I am seeing, more and more, the stress of school readiness and academics popping up in schools around the nation and even more in our preschool settings. What does this tell us? For me, this concerns me, not that we are not teaching our children enough, or being developmentally appropriate, but rather that we need to educate others of the importance that we do everyday with our young children.  Play is so extremely important, but it gets put in the background many times to academic results. Play can do much more for a child than a worksheet or test, and it is time for us to show it through outcomes, results, research and studies. Some of the resources that I will be looking into further throughout this researching process are through some articles that i have listed below.  Please let me know if any of you have any questions, suggestions, or concerns about the topic that I have chosen or the resources I have provided. I look forward to learning more from all of you and sharing our valuable research with each other!!!

References:

Almon, J. (2009). Entering the World of Play. Encounter, 22(1), 11-14. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.

Ginsburg, K. R. (2007). The Importance of Play in Promoting Healthy Child Development and Maintaining Strong Parent-Child Bonds. Pediatrics, 119(1), 182-191. doi:10.1542/peds.2006-2697

Ling-Ling, T. (2002). How Much Do We Know About the Importance of Play in Child Development?. Childhood Education, 78(4), 230. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.

Reading, R. (2007). The importance of play in promoting healthy child development and maintaining strong parent–child bonds. Child: Care, Health & Development, 33(6), 807-808. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2214.2007.00799_8.x

Singer, D. G. (2009). Play and the Search for Identity in the Cyberspace Community. Washington & Lee Law Review, 66(3), 1003-1031. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.