Dimensions of Early Childhood - Southern Early Childhood ...

has perhaps led to the decline of
play, or at least child-directed play.
The authors ground their work in
the United Nations Declaration of
the Rights of the Child which states,
“The child shall have full opportunity
for play and recreation, which
should be directed to the same purposes
as education...to enable him to
develop his abilities, his individual
judgment, and his sense of moral
and social responsibility, and to
become a useful member of society
(United Nations, 1959)” (Jones &
Cooper, p. viii).
Before embarking on the series of
musings and classroom observations,
which constitute the chapters
of this persuasive and ultimately
forceful book, readers are reminded
by the authors of the stages of play
children go through as they develop
and acquire knowledge. Childhood
sets the foundation for lifelong
learning and attitudes in the future.
Disrupting play in childhood disrupts
vital thinking. Can this in
truth be dangerous?
The authors invite and indeed
challenge the reader to peruse the
book as a game, preparing strategies
of application in their own minds as
they first digest the “springboard
stories” contained in each chapter,
and later share their reflections with
a colleague. This dynamic reading
approach is carried out by the very
conversational tone of the exposition
and the role of storyteller assumed
by the authors. The disequilibrium
recommended as a part of learning is
characteristic of this book. It is not a
lazy read. Readers are expected to
savor each statement and test its flavor
against their own attitudinal palette.
Jones and Cooper present assumptions
that challenge curriculum
planners and protest administrative
dictates. By reading about others’
experiences, readers can reach a
breakthrough understanding of
difficult concepts. What are these
difficult concepts? Some of them
are: testing of young children;
embedded knowledge; naming
power, rules, and feelings; shared
decision-making and making choices;
interpreting play to outsiders and
parents; and empathetic conflict
resolution. This is not a typical
problem-solving textbook; the structure
consists of stories illustrating
straightforward belief statements,
which bring depth and humor to
each premise so they remain vivid.
In growing past infancy, children
need many opportunities to get
smart—to think, to reason, to argue,
to experience the consequences of
disobedience. The first responsibility
of adults is to provide safe boundaries
within which children can do
these wonderful things. At the end
of the book the authors outline
“assumptions” of quality play as the
“game rules” to guide the reading of
the book. Because the child’s right to
play as outlined by the United
Nations still has not been ratified by
the United States, it is up to early
childhood educators and families to
protect, promote, and preserve play.
—Lita Haddal
Editor, OMEP-US National
Chapter Newsletter
Child Care Information Center
Madison, Wisconsin
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Dimensions on CD ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Tired of trying to find the journal to make paper copies of Dimensions articles?
You’ll now be able to buy these articles on CD. Each CD will include 10 articles
published within the last five years, as well as a SECA position statement on
the issue. Use these CD’s for staff development, to replace paper course
packets, or anywhere you would use copies of articles.
#DCD 01 Dimensions on CD: Health, Development & Play
#DCD 03 Dimensions on CD: Early Literacy & Language Development
#DCD 02 Dimensions on CD: Math, Science and the Arts
#DCD 04 Dimensions on CD: Staff Development & Professionalism
$10.00 SECA Member/$12.00 Non-member
(For a complete list of the articles included in each CD, go to
www.SouthernEarlyChildhood.org, click on Dimensions, and you’ll find product
information there.)
40 Volume 35, Number 1 DIMENSIONS OF EARLY CHILDHOOD Winter 2007