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Nap for Success
April 27, 2010
It is quite true what philosophy says that life must be understood backwards. But above that, one forgets the second sentence, that it must be lived forward.
-Søren Kierkegaard, Philosopher, 1813-1855
-Søren Kierkegaard, Philosopher, 1813-1855
This news was reported in a BBC News story, "Dreams 'can help with learning'." The story reported on the research of Dr. Robert Stickgold of Harvard Medical School. He found that...
"...people who dream about a new task perform it better on waking than those who do not sleep or do not dream. Volunteers were asked to learn the layout of a 3D computer maze so they could find their way within the virtual space several hours later. Those allowed to take a nap and who also remembered dreaming of the task, found their way to a landmark quicker. The researchers think the dreams are a sign that unconscious parts of the brain are working hard to process information about the task. Stickgold observed, "The dreams might reflect the brain's attempt to find associations for the memories that could make them more useful in the future."
Another researcher involved in the study, Dr Erin Wamsley, said the study suggests our non-conscious brain works on the things that it deems are most important. "Every day we are gathering and encountering tremendous amounts of information and new experiences," she said. "It would seem that our dreams are asking the question, 'How do I use this information to inform my life?'"
In his fascinating book, The Power of Play: How Spontaneous, Imaginative Activities Lead to Happier, Healthier Children, David Elkind argues that "Play is being silenced." According to Elkind, important, unstructured play is too often replaced in modern times by organized activities, academics, or passive leisure activities such as watching television and playing video games. With clarity and insight, Elkind calls for society to bring back long recesses, encourage imagination and let children develop their minds at a natural pace.ExchangeEveryDay
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Comments (3)
Displaying All 3 Commentsthe grand child care center
chicago, IL, United States
Power nap- a ten to fifteen minutes of a nap is a healthy way to recharge our mind and body. Listening to soft music while napping also relaxes our mind and we can work more efficiently. Did I conduct a survey? Not really, but after working with children for 22 years I have observed that when teachers take a short nap at their break time worked more efficiently than those who go out on their lunch breaks.
Geeta Bhatt. Director, Grand Child Care Center, Chicago.
Shishu Vikash Kendra
Kolkata, West Bengal, India
Play is the main theory to rapport with the children oriented from the children
They like to play all time . So a good caregiver should learn how to play with
the children . A person who cannot play with children , cannot teach the children .
Play Centers, Inc.
Lutherville, Maryland, United States
Twenty nine years ago when I approached the Baltimore County Public Schools to initiate an after school program, I was told that we could not "teach" the children after school as that activity belonged to the school day. I assured them that we would indeed not "teach" the children but the children would be given plenty of opportunity to play.
Through the years we have gone through many changes in the public schools including being told that we could be instrumental in bringing up scores in academics if we would "teach" the children academics in the after school program.
We continued to give the children plenty of opportunity to play but did structure the indoor activities to include eight choices each day. One of the choices was a homework area for children who felt a need to complete homework before going on to the hectic evening of sports and other obligations.
We have never conducted a survey of academic success of the children in our care but we have been told by one principal, who conducted his own informal evaluation, that the children who participated in our programs were much better adjusted to school and socially well ahead of children who had not participated in the programs. (These were kindergarten and first grade children.)
The bottom line is we continue to believe in the "Power of Play" and will continue to give the children in our care as much play as they need.
We invite you to meet us on www.playcenters.org
Mona Criswell
President
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