My in-laws recently tore down their old garage. An old wooden slab structure that was falling in upon itself, it hadn't been fit for a car in years but instead had become a storage place of those things that become unneeded but not thrown away.
One of the several treasures that emerged from the tear down was a child's toy. A miniature table saw made of metal and powerful enough to cut Balsam Wood when loaded with three C batteries. Built to scale, about half the size of a toaster, the saw could be raised and lowered for depth of cut and the table could be titled by degrees for angled cuts. The detail was incredible. The blade was driven by a mini rubber belt which spun on two wheels that could be tightened with a miniature wrench when they came loose from spinning the blade.
I wish I would have taken a picture because the toy is an excellent representation using play to prepare a child preparing for work. Judging by the packaging, the toy was obviously being marketing to a boy and based by the attention to detail, the toy assumed that the boy would most likely need this skill for later in life, either professionally or for work around the house.
Play always was, and still is preparation for life. And not just for humans. Ever see video of lion cubs wrestling or a bear cup imitating the hunting practices of its mother?
It got me to thinking, what kinds of play kids participate in today that prepares them for life skills in such a direct manner? The first example that jumped to mind is video games. Studies suggest that time spent playing video games help with problem-solving ability, the ability to feel empathy, to work in teams, and to see the interconnectedness between disparate things. And, many of the web-based tools out there, such as blogs, photo editing, video and music production, prepare kids to use many of these same skills as well as get them accustomed to giving and receiving feedback in to just the practical but also affective domains.
Another great element of play today is that it's no longer expected to end with childhood. Play is no longer childish but rather, many disciplines today require adults to maintain a child like sense of wonder and enjoyment through play in order for them to be productive contributors. In fact I think it is one of our responsibilities in higher ed. is to prepare our students in how to play as adults.
One of the several treasures that emerged from the tear down was a child's toy. A miniature table saw made of metal and powerful enough to cut Balsam Wood when loaded with three C batteries. Built to scale, about half the size of a toaster, the saw could be raised and lowered for depth of cut and the table could be titled by degrees for angled cuts. The detail was incredible. The blade was driven by a mini rubber belt which spun on two wheels that could be tightened with a miniature wrench when they came loose from spinning the blade.
I wish I would have taken a picture because the toy is an excellent representation using play to prepare a child preparing for work. Judging by the packaging, the toy was obviously being marketing to a boy and based by the attention to detail, the toy assumed that the boy would most likely need this skill for later in life, either professionally or for work around the house.
Play always was, and still is preparation for life. And not just for humans. Ever see video of lion cubs wrestling or a bear cup imitating the hunting practices of its mother?
It got me to thinking, what kinds of play kids participate in today that prepares them for life skills in such a direct manner? The first example that jumped to mind is video games. Studies suggest that time spent playing video games help with problem-solving ability, the ability to feel empathy, to work in teams, and to see the interconnectedness between disparate things. And, many of the web-based tools out there, such as blogs, photo editing, video and music production, prepare kids to use many of these same skills as well as get them accustomed to giving and receiving feedback in to just the practical but also affective domains.
Another great element of play today is that it's no longer expected to end with childhood. Play is no longer childish but rather, many disciplines today require adults to maintain a child like sense of wonder and enjoyment through play in order for them to be productive contributors. In fact I think it is one of our responsibilities in higher ed. is to prepare our students in how to play as adults.
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