Play!

**"This is a playground. Watch out for adult children."** **-- Play Team**



We go to school day-in and day-out, and let's face it-> sometimes those little, irritating things add up! By the end of those days, we are annoyed or frustrated, fed up or just plain tired!The old thinking goes- //well, all these things happened to me, oh well, too bad//. The NEW thinking is- //infuse some play into your day, and everything really will be okay.// Sure, that sounds a little cheesy, but trust us, it actually works! How do you go about playing more at work? Yes, we //are// surrounded by stressful testing everywhere: CSAP/BEAR/DIBELS/ACUITY/other acronyms..., seemingly anti-collaborative teachers, or perhaps even a principal that just can't find the time to stop by and see all the cool things we are doing... __but__ __you don't even need to leave the library or your classroom to incorporate PLAY, you don't need to change much at all__, just check out the insights below...

__** Rules for PLAY ** (why play anyway?): __
 * Happy people treat others well and in turn "others" treat you better as well


 * Fun leads to creativity, better teaching, better instructional leadership (and in turn, kiddos //want// to work with you, staff members //want// to collaborate more often, community members //want// to support you...)


 * The time passes more quickly (how did it get to be 4:00 already?!)


 * Having a good time is healthier for us, our students, everyone


 * Work becomes a reward and not just a //way// to get other rewards

Fish food for thought: "This business pays a lot of salaries, and we take the business seriously, but we discovered we could be serious about business and still have fun with the way we conducted business....What many of our customers think of as entertainment is just a bunch of adult kids having a good time, but doing it in a respectful manner." -- Lonnie, fishmonger and inspirational employee //**Consider this quote from the __Fish__ book. How can you be serious about your position in the school, be responsible about the role you have, but still have fun?** //

Lisa Coyle: Here's a real OLDIE (from the days when I was a high school //student//) that has been a reminder of fun and work: We were studying WWII in AP high school social studies and were learning about the Blitzkrieg. It was boring reading, intense memorizing dates and dry stuff. Then the other AP social studies class "raided" our room, running by and throwing paper airplanes into our classroom! It was just the break we needed! We talked about the target areas and who in our class would have survived. A week later, we got our revenge in a "night raid" where the first person to run by the other class turned off the lights, then the rest of us tossed our paper airplanes and "bombs" of balled-up paper. No one wanted to ruin the fun by hurting the other class' students, no one wanted to give away our attack by yelling -- it was just FUN. At the end of the unit, both classes got together for a "Peace Talk" and talked about what we learned during the unit while we had snacks. Learning still happened, but fun was had as well.

Sue Lord: That is so awesome, Lisa! I think the respectful part is the crucial element. If it is respectful, and learning happens, then play is perfectly professional. The library is a great place to change things up a little, and the kids sure appreciate the break. Once a teacher I worked with had a "fake" argument with me, he said technology led to science discoveries, and I said science led to technology breakthroughs, and we both ended up storming out of the room. After a stunned silence, the students realized it was pretend, and when we walked back in we got a standing ovation. Then we talked about the topic at a deeper level. It was a blast.

Jeanette Causey: I am not in a library but I am a science teacher. I love to have fun and try to plan something silly or light into every 100 minute block. Sometimes it is a video or a poem written from the perspective of the termite that they are about to use in the experiment or a Mole Day song. The trick is to show them that we are doing the serious business of learning but we can be enjoy it and make it light too.

//**What concerns do you have about incorporating play into the library or classrooms? What has held you back before from being more playful in the past?**//

Lynne McDowell: Sometimes, play can get out of hand very quickly and people and property gets hurt. It takes a bit of forethought to plan ways to incorporate play. Incorporate is the key word here. Play has to happen with instruction and not necessarily as a separate activity. Time limitations can also keep me from being as playful as I'd like.

Dana Lott: I am reminded of the program we use to meet math standards and curriculum in our district-- EveryDay Math. The game playing portion is critical and recommended to be used on a daily basis. Kids learn so much math out of the games. But I remember how the pressures of getting through the all the parts of the lessons often pushed playing time out. So, I agree with Lynne, as the time limitations can keep us from being playful. It's like we have a mentality that we have to do the hard work and then play later instead of making the work playful to begin with. I LOVE this philosophy! Easier said than done, but awareness is the first step. Thanks, fishmongers, for a fabulous and fun presentation!!! :)

Jeanette Causey: I model being positive in our fun. We need to be respectful and not use others as the butt of our jokes or do anything that could be dangerous in any way.

"And the benefits are many... We enjoy work that //can// be very tedious. We have become great friends, like the players on a winning team. We have a lot of pride in what we do and the way we do it... We know how to play!" -- Lonnie, fishmonger and inspirational employee //**<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Another quote to ponder from the book. Some ideas were listed above in the quote as well as the "Rules for Play" section. Are there other benefits of incorporating play into our work lives? If so, what are they? ** //

Regina Hoskins: I think by incorporating play it enables a more comfortable work environment and one which draws people to become closer. My principal takes his entire staff on the last staff development day in May to "play" somewhere. We have gone putt-putt golfing, driving go-carts, bowling, played volleyball, and had a picnic. All of us become closer because we get out of our own classrooms and play together. In fact, we've talked as a staff about starting the year "playing" and ending it "playing." We think it would help us all get excited about the new year when everybody is a little sluggish coming back after summer break. This has contributed to our staff becoming very close friends and many of us hang out together outside of our work days. I think the benefit of play can really alleviate stress. We have once a month FAC's (Friday After-school Club.....many of us call them Faculty Alcohol Club) where we go have drinks and socialize before starting our weekends. By playing, I think it builds friendships and helps boost morale around the workplace. The last example I want to share is with Halloween. Almost our entire staff dresses for Halloween. Our students love it and our principal said that many schools in our district can't believe our staff get so into it. This is a good example of play. We enjoy dressing and having fun on Halloween with our middle school students. It makes for a fun day for everybody and the kids see us as "normal" because we dress up like them.

<span style="background-color: #29319e; color: #ffffff; display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 130%; text-align: center;">Actions to consider:

 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Host a Playstorm (a brainstorm session with only two rules: lots of ideas and the crazier the better) on this question: "How can we Play more at school (or in the library)?" Look at the ideas, and then choose one and make it happen.


 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Don't be afraid to improvise--and encourage others to do the same. Experimentation is how new things get created.


 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Start a "Play of the Week" (like the sports news) highlighting playful or creative things that members of your staff or students are doing in your school. You could advertise this as videos on your library website or during the school announcements.

<span style="color: #232390; display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 130%; text-align: center;">//Now let's go **__PLAY__!!** :)//