When I signed up for this class, I have a few preconceived ideas. I knew a few of the topics that we would discussed, as well as, that the course would be helpful in my work field. Both of these reasons were due to the fact that my employer had previously taken the class herself, and asked me to be sure to take it as well. Even with this foreknowledge, I learned so much more than I could have ever imagined.
Coming into this class I knew play was an important activity for children, and that children must be given time to play. I understood the effects play can have, or help, in regards to the energy level of a child. Children need to have time to run and be crazy, and burn off that extra pent up power. What was a new idea to me was that, …show more content…
Play can be a time of creativity. When I hear the word creativity, art projects and drawings first come to mind. This is an area where a form of creativity can be expressed, but creativity also open the door to so many more blessings in your life. Creative thinking is necessary for problem solving, and gives you vision to see things see your life differently than it is at any given point. It was eye opening to read in Stuart Brown’s book, Play: How it Shapes the Brain, Opens the Imagination, and Invigorates the Soul, that “the opposite of play is not work, but that is is depression” (Brown, 2009). I had to sit and think about that statement for awhile. Stopping someone from playing and being creative is shutting off part of their brain, and this makes the person more depressed, not wanting to work harder. Encourage those around you, as well as yourself, to make a new habit of looking for more areas to play and be creative as much as …show more content…
It was amazing to me how many times I found the line between the two classes became blurred. One of these area was in talking out the idea of Thriving. What does it mean to Thrive in the world, and how does knowing how to play help to accomplish it? To Thrive, by definition, mean to “to grow vigorously, to gain in wealth or possessions, to progress toward or realize a goal despite or because of circumstances” (Thrive). Throughout his book, Thrive: Finding Happiness the Blue Zones Way, Dan Buettner talks about different adults around the world that have learned that happiness and joy does not come from having a stockpile of money, or any outdoor situation. The point Buettner makes through this book, is that true happiness, the kind that will help you throughout your life, comes from within. From what I have learned in both of these classes, there is no better way to help our children thrive in their own lives, then to help them learn to play and build inner peace, confidence, resilience, and