Overview

I was recently reminded that fighting for play in the lives of young children has been going on for a long time. A dive down an internet rabbit hole led me to an archive of old early learning publications. Fortuitously, the one I’m highlighting in this post was the first to catch my eye. I found it in…

Wikipedia says the International Kindergarten Union was established in 1892 and became Childhood Education International at some later date. One Wikipedia page says 1924 ¹, and another says 1931². The organization is still around today, but I’m not sure what their position is on play–it’s not mentioned in the Vision or Mission and I did not find it when I searched many of their website’s pages.

I tried to find out more about the article’s author, Gertha Williams, but the job title listed in the publication is about all the internet has about her…

I’d love to know more if she happens to be your great-grandmother’s second cousin and you have a box of memorabilia sitting in your attic.

I’ve provided a PDF of the 2-page article at the end of this post, but I wanted to highlight some quotes.

Reading

After nearly 100 years, some of us are still fighting for play in early childhood, while others are pushing for more formal academic learning. Here’s what Williams thought…

Just because something can be done with some kids does not mean it should be forced on all kids. Pushing reading on a child who is not physically and cognitively ready for reading can be a painful experience for everyone involved. Why not wait until they’re ready?

I love this. “He needs real, not vicarious experience” since there is so much he has “not yet seen, heard, or felt.”

Adults often forget how truly new kids, even at five, six, or seven years of age, are to the world; how inexperienced and unknowing they are. Why push reading on them when they could be up and doing real things, having real experiences?

Fighting For Play

Adults also often forget that play, although set apart from the real world, is a safe space where kids are in control and learn about the real world.

100 years ago, Williams was talking about the tendency for reading and other subjects to be pushed down into the early years. Something modern-day play advocates have spent their careers doing. Sadly, fighting for play seems to be an unending battle. Things have certainly gotten worse in the 25+ years I’ve been at it.

I also like her three reasons for this push-down of the curriculum…

Play looks simple, but in reality, it’s multidimensional, nuanced, and often very personalized to the needs of those at play. Paying attention to easier-to-teach and easier-to-measure activities is, well, easier. Play is also not teacher-focused. It is centered on the interests, needs, and choices of those at play. Many adults struggle with letting kids ‘just play’ because they don’t know what to do with themselves while that’s happening.

This is also an excellent idea…

…but play and other hard-to-measure things are frequently usurped, becoming afterthoughts, treats for after the real learning happens.

More Play And Experiences, Not Less

And finally, a recommendation that more play, exploration, and authentic experiences are maintained in kindergarten and pushed up into first grade. How’s that as an example of fighting for play?

I would have loved to chat about play and early learning with Gertha Williams over a couple of glasses of bootleg gin in some 1927 Detroit speakeasy. I’m sure she’d be disappointed we were still fighting for play.

PDF

Here’s the PDF if you have any use for it:

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1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Kindergarten_Union
2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Childhood_Education_International