Play: the work of children

Dan is a stay at home dad with 3 little girls: Pam in first grade, Lisa – age 5 and Susie – age 2. Dan, Lisa and Susie come weekly to the Creative Play Place on Thursdays and for Fitness Fridays. Susie is about this high with short, whispy blond hair, a big smile and is usually found hiding behind daddy legs at first. Lisa has longer, straight blond hair and is also fairly quiet. Thursday morning is Stories, Songs and Movement time at the Creative Play Place and they are some of my regular participants. Susie’s face lights up and she does this cute little bouncy dance as we sing. Lisa always giggles and leans back, pointing enthusiastically at her friend Brandon when we sing, “I like You.” Dan says if he sings one of the songs at home, Susie stops him and in her soft, squeaky voice tells him, “That song is for the Creative Play Place.”

Their family lives in a small apartment, so they don’t have ton of room for lots of toys. The Creative Play Place gives them a place to do children’s work, to play. Whether they are cutting and gluing, climbing in the castle, singing or dressing Dan up with them in feather boas, Dan is always playing, helping and cheering them on. The Creative Play Place is a place for their family to come together to play.

Last week, Dan told me that he has to go back to Afghanistan in the fall. He said he once argued that his kids are too young and was told that kids are resilient. His response was, “Yeah, but dads aren’t.” Next year, Lisa will start kindergarten, and Susie will come to the Creative Play Place with her childcare center. The Creative Play Place will take on a whole new meaning for her next year. It will be a place with familiar faces and routines and reminders of happy times shared with her daddy.

The Creative Play Place is an example of “third places,” places beyond home and school, where children connect to friends, other adults and their families. A place where children can work out their real lives through play. Play is the work of children and the Creative Play Place a special place for that to happen.