How important is play?   By Melinda Bossenmeyer, Ed.D. 
For the generation of Americans that lived by the daily adage, “you must come inside when the street lights come on,” the importance of play was intuitive and occurred naturally in the course of everyday American life. Baby boomers recite the street light regulation as one of America’s unwritten rules that most children understood and practiced. Certainly that was the case for those of…

It's finally here.  The best day of the year.  The first day of summer........

E N J O Y!!!!

School Recess: Structured Games and Activities at Recessby Melinda Bossenmeyer, Ed.D. Structured recess.  Good idea or bad?
Today I received a phone call from a second grade teacher.  She indicated that she had a behavior challenged child (frequent discipline issues) and was growing pretty frustrated with him.  In response to Jeremy (not his real name), who was hitting kids, pushing kids, and causing chaos at recess, the school decided that they w…

Contributed by Andrea Bossenmeyer


Studies show that play reflects more of who you are than your work. When you're engaged in activities of "personal expressiveness," ones that are self-chosen and that reflect intrinsic goals, you're operating from the "true self," says Alan Waterman of the College of New Jersey.

As a self titled seeker, I love hearing about anything that helps me discover more of the truth. The trut…

Ohio leave no child inside video urges teachers and parents to see to it that all children play outside at least once per day.



Need some outdoor game ideas? Check out the Peaceful Playgrounds instructional games DVD's.

By JC Boushh I get asked a lot about how to design the perfect playground for children when I lecture at conferences, and meet with clients to design their outdoor play environments. The first thing to know is that it is not just the playground that is important in the design, but it is actually the entire outdoor environment. Although the type of playground equipment you select is important to creating a good play environment, it is definitely …

Contributed by JC Boushh This week I have been focusing on old-fashion play and the consequences we face when we do not allow children every opportunity to play. I reside in Southern California, which in my opinion has some of the nicest weather in the country year round, but to astonishment I have visited numerous child care centers were at the slightest sign of overcast skies or rain showers the kids are corralled inside to ride out the storm.…

Contributed by JC Boushh An article by Gordon Clark in THE PROVINCE titled “We modern parents are safety freaks” had me reminiscing about my childhood in the 1970’s. At that time my parents, specifically my mother because my father was at work, allowed me to play outside in the rear yard where we had two large acacia trees growing and I was allowed to wander around the neighborhood without to many restrictions. Looking back at the amount of free…