(View entire post here)

What are the areas of our culture most in need of “play hygiene?”

Most adults have “forgotten” what it was like to engage in free play when they were kids. And truthfully, they may have not had much experience with free play when they were young. Beginning in preschool, the natural mayhem that 3-5 year olds engage in (normal rough and tumble play) is usually suppressed by a well meaning preschool teacher and parents who prefer quiet and order to the seeming chaos that is typical of free childhood play. We need adequate play hygiene in preschools so that both parents and preschool teachers recognize the difference between dangerous out of control boundary-less anarchy, and normal play-- diving, screaming, chasing, even some punching. When there are smiles and continuing friendships, rambunctious play is healthy. The awareness on the part of parents and teachers of the value of free child-organized--meaning lightly supervised--play for elementary school children at recess is another area where greater insight about play hygiene is needed. Play should also be used with teachers in their classroom, and by parents when they help their child with homework. Learning should not be drudgery. Play promotes true intellectual curiously. It has been shown to increase lifetime performance, just as adequate recess time leads to increased long term academic accomplishments.

 » Stuart Brown discusses his book, which examines the importance of playing and how humans are designed to play throughout their lives, and also reads an excerpt.

» Listen to other Penguin Podcasts.

» Read more about Play.

Stuart Brown, Play, Podcast

(View entire post here)

I recently did an interview in which I was asked if I had flown any of the planes in Flygirl. I still chuckle to think of it. I’m a writer, not a pilot. Now, it’s true that California is dotted with small airfields offering a chance to fly in a real World War II bomber or other vintage plane—I know someone who did it for their birthday. It’s just not me. I’m kind of a scaredy-cat when it comes to small planes, or anything with the word “vintage” in front of it that’s supposed to hold me up in the air. I have flown in a little Cessna with nothing but me, some frozen halibut, a pilot and a co-pilot in the sky, but those other two people are the minimum mandatory personnel I need to get me into the air. (The fish is optional.) Peanuts and a movie for me, I say. So then, how did I convincingly capture the joy of flight and the skills of the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP)? Research, my friends, lots and lots of research.