All Work and No Play...

Picture this.  A student stands at her locker at the end of a long day, loading books into her backpack for the evening.  For now, her homework will have to wait.  She’s off to swim lessons for an hour, and then it’s Chinese tutoring after that.  Only then can she go home to face her homework, eat a quick meal, and head to bed before she starts it all again the next day.  Unfortunately, this is what a typical afternoon is like for many kids these days, and simply put, they don’t have any time for one of the most important factors of childhood, unstructured play.
     
Sure, critics of giving too much unstructured play may say that it’s a complete waste of time.  Not only that, kids will “get behind” if they don’t keep practicing their sports or instruments or get straight A’s.  I have to admit that as a parent, I feel pressure to sign up my girls for music lessons, sports teams, and dance classes, but I always make sure that they have some play time in their schedules.  They just wouldn’t be the same without it, and neither would I.

Back when I was a kid, I remember my mom saying, “Outside, boys!” almost daily.  We ventured out into the woods to hide behind trees and fight imaginary enemy troops.  Other afternoons, we spent hours building forts and weapons out of sticks, twigs, and whatever else nature had to offer.  And, yes, sometimes we got in fights too, but we were the ones who had to figure out what to do when that happened.  Basically, this unstructured play time allowed us to work together and sort out our own problems without any help. 
     
Recently, my two daughters spent the entire Saturday uninterrupted up in their rooms, floating from unstructured activity to the next.  When I went up to check on them, dolls were lined up, toys were strewn throughout, and there in the middle sat Isabelle and Eloise with big smiles on their faces.  When asked what they were doing, they explained an elaborate story of what happened to Felicity, one of the dolls, at their pretend school.  This free time allowed them to think creatively.

Don’t just take my word for it.  Google, one of the most famous and successful companies out there, encourages play time like no one else.  With its “20% Rule,” employees are encouraged to spend 20% of their work time pursuing their passions on their own terms.  They know that this “play time” will lead to innovation and new ideas.

Now picture this.  A student stands at her locker at the end of a long day, loading books into her backpack for the evening.  Suddenly, a smile spreads across her face as she thinks of the free hour she has before she tackles her homework.  Maybe she’ll play with her dog, maybe she’ll draw a picture, maybe she’ll play a game with her sister.  Whatever she does, she’ll have an opportunity to develop crucial skills through unstructured play on her own terms.