Article Link: http://exchangepress.com/article/at-the-corner-of-then-and-now/5024474/
Margie: This year as I celebrated my 76th circle around the sun and started getting more serious about semi-retirement, I found myself looking back over the decades of my life in the early childhood field, first as a teacher, then on to the roles of director, coach, author, college instructor, and consultant. Recalling so many fine people I have encountered, what a delightful surprise to have an email land on my screen with the subject heading, “Then and Now.” There was my wonderful mentor and friend, Betty Jones, with just a dozen more spins around the sun than I, mentioning she too has been spending the last few years sorting, sifting, remembering, and reconnecting. With the delight of being back in touch sharing reflections, I proposed we offer our conversation to Exchange readers.
We entered the field at slightly different points in history but discovered some shared passions and influences on our thinking. We believe that play is at the heart of children’s learning and are fascinated by watching children’s play. We think adults, too, benefit from play, not only as a way to get into what psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi terms “flow” (1990), but as a way to continue learning. We ...