|
PlayDate
Initiative
By
Michell Muldoon
It Takes Initiative To Get Kids To Play
Play is a rare luxury for most kids in
this country.
In today's world, children live a life that is
over-scheduled. Children go from school, to after-hours
day care, sports, music and dance lessons or other
types of after-school activities. There are also
the very important extracurricular studies that
are required in CCD classes, Bible school, Hebrew
school lessons and church choirs. There are incredible
experiences to be had in Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts,
YMCA programs and all sorts of other wonderful
offerings that are available for kids. Although
there is richness in these types of opportunities,
what they are missing is simple, basic play. The
kind of free-form play that helps children to
negotiate other kids personalities, solve problems
and develop tools to teach them something about
the strength of their own inner character.
This type of knowledge is learned through personal
interaction, exposure to the same groups of people,
and the time to figure it out on their own. What
has happened to personal time and core communities
for kids is that it has become as extinct as the
Dinosaurs we are so ready to haul them off to
see at the local museums!
Sadly, there are also a tremendous amount of
children who sit alone, without a parent or guardian
present and no children to play with. There are
working mothers who barely have enough time or
money to put food on the table, let alone worry
about a child's need to play.
There is also another facet to this problem.
And that is, we as parents want to be with our
children, and to share in the amazing experiences
that are available to them. But as wonderful and
as stimulating as so many of these programs are,
we need to give our children a time to play.
What I propose here is to have group playdates.
To find a great group of people and create occasions
to get together. This way children can have friends,
and grown ups get the chance to socialize as well
in an informal, casual way.
However, this proposition, although simple on
paper, does require initiative and some coordination.
Most of the women I know today are exhausted.
We are working stressful jobs, managing our households
and handling the details of our children’s
lives. The constant running around is adding additional
stress to our relationships with our significant
others. We barely have enough time to think through
the details of our own lives, let alone consider
adding another level of stress to our days. However,
childhood, which impacts our children's lives
down the road, is very much at stake here. That
is why it is important to make an effort to create
these occasions. And it is absolutely critical
to make it a group effort.
About Initiative
The reason that FunPlayDates was started was so
that we as mothers could insure our children's
play days. What we have found along the way is
that many children have very few friends and that
they spend their spare time sitting in front of
a TV or a computer. This is an enormous waste.
The initiative it takes to make a group playdate
can be as simple as arranging a group picnic at
the local playground or inviting some of the neighbors
to do a group cookout. Ask everyone to bring their
own lunch or something for the cookout and some
outdoor toys or games. Even if the group has to
take turns watching the kids, this type of effort
will bring such simple joy to the kids.
This kind of get-together should always be simple.
And if it is too much to try to call everyone
or think up an invitation - make it easier on
yourself by getting some great ideas from FunPlaydates.
FunPlayDates.com was designed to provide invitations,
quick crafts from simple, household items, and
great no-cook recipe tips to make the busy Mom
look like she has time to cook! However you do
it, the most important consideration here is that
we make sure our children have a chance to experience
the magic of play and the richness of a community.
|
