"MY CONNECTIONS TO PLAY"

Children need the freedom and time to play. Play is not a luxury. Play is a necessity.

-Kay Redfield Jamison

“The ability to play is one of the principal criteria of mental health.”

As a child I can remember how my parents encouraged us to play all the time. “Go outside and play” my mother would say to us. Getting together with the neighbors and riding up and down the neighborhood on our bikes and playing throw back football with the boys was the best time of my life. I don’t recall it being girl games and boy games. We would all play together and have a great time. I can say that playing with the kids in my neighborhood built great social skills for me as an adult. Playing is an essential part of life. Children learn with and from one another in a caring community, and that’s true of moral as well as academic learning. Interdependence counts at least as much as independence, so it follows that practices that pit students against one another in some kind of competition, thereby undermining a feeling of community, are deliberately avoided.(Kohn) The child’s love of learning is intimately linked with a zest for play. Whether children are working on new physical skills, social relations, or cognitive content, they approach life with a playful spirit.(Almon)

Relationship Reflection

The very first relationship one encounters is with a parent we look for our parents to be there for us to nurture and love us. We learn morals and values from our parents. My mother is still a positive factor in my life. She has taught me to be a positive role model to others. She would not allow me to hang out with friends of my choice. If she did not approve of them then I was not allowed to hang out with them. I come from large family. I enjoy the relationship that my family and I share. We have family cookouts every weekend. This is our way of staying connected with one another. My grandmother has a strong relationship with each of us. She knows when something is bothering us and has taught us to depend on each other for advice and support. Having a strong relationship with my family gives me a sense of security. I know that I can go to my family for support. I have no children of my own, but I have developed a special bond with young girl. Kimora is a five year old who I have known since she was born. We have a special bond with each other. I have had the opportunity to be in her life as a mother. She depends on me to be there for her emotionally and physically. A relationship ensures that you will have someone to comfort and care about you during times of discouragement or frustration and vice versa. Relationships teach you to have faith in others as well as faith in yourself. Here is a list of some benefits of having healthy relationships and characteristics associated with them:

• Increased self-esteem

• Increased sensitivity to one’s own and other’s emotions/feelings

• Increased ability to be more assertive

• Learn to be more cooperative with others

• Learn to be interdependent rather than totally independent or dependent

of others

Building a healthy relationship with others helps to develop a censure and kind individual.