We've all seen the happiness in children's faces while they play in the school park. Or the blissful abandon of a golden retriever racing with glee across an open lawn. This is the joy of play. By definition it is purposeless, all-consuming and restorative. Play is its own reward and most important, it's fun.
As we become adults, taking time to play feels like only a guilty pleasure - a distraction from "real" work and life. But as Dr. Stuart Brown, the leading expert on play behavior explains, play is anything but trivial. It is a basic biological drive as integral to our health and functioning as sleep or nutrition. When we play, we open to possibility and the sparks of new insight and thought. Play provides the glue for our relationships and fuels our creativity. in short, we are designed by nature to flourish through play.
Even the lowest creatures on the evolutionary spectrum have a play mechanism. But humans are the biggest players of all - we are meant to play throughout life. Whether it's through physical activity, social interaction, competition, adventure, or art, our need to play is hardwired into our brains.
Beyond its role in our personal fulfillment, the benefits of play have profound implications for child development and parenting, for education and social policy, for business, productivity, and even the future of society. Play offers an inside look at new research suggesting the direct role of three-dimensional object play in shaping our brains and at animal studies showing the starling effects of the absence of play. It also presents sweeping practical examples of arenas in which play can produce real results - including companies that are harnessing the power of play in die workspace to encourage innovation and schools that use play effectively to motivate their students.
A cutting-edge science and inspiring personal stories, this book proves that play just might be the most important work we can do.
Stuart Brown M.D. is a medical doctor, psychiatrist, clinical researcher and the founder of the National Institute for Play.
I hope you enjoy his book as much as I did. I'm a mother of two small boys. In my ignorance and without sufficient data, I pushed the boys to do good in school and sports, forever doing homework. I could see the sparkle in their eyes dimming day by day. That is when I asked myself - Is this healthy and natural?
I am grateful to Stuart Brown for his work and studies (especially the scientific proof). Parents are forever scared that their children will stay behind with academic prestige and therefor would not be successful in later life. They push their children hard for A's and first team sports, killing their full potential and also causing them to stress (and that has a huge effect on their health).
Here's to Play!
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