Play is not just for kids, play is essential for creativity. An article from earlier this year in the New York Times tries hard to debunk some of the more rosy-tinted-glasses view of the role and purpose of play in the lives of children, to arrive at some interesting findings about how play is essential in developing the brain.
Margaret Boden talks extensively about exploratory creativity and the role of play in creating a map of the mind, so to speak, which allows us to not just be creative through the increased connections formed in the brain as a result, but also to arrive at solutions from many angles - much like having a map allows you many different routes to your destination. I'll write some more on this in an upcoming post, but to start off the debate - have a read of the article above.
A great reaction to this article came from Ron Meyers (below), who touches on the very important aspect of play as a means of familiarising oneself with a domain to enable creative expression or just generally learning - and that, unfortunately has slightly been lost in the article..
"Whether the ultimate function of play is conceived as preparation, flexibility, socialization or existential fortitude, one of the greatest examples of play can be found in a liberal education. No one expects more than a handful of students to become philosophers, scientists or literary critics. But the joyful exercise of reading, discussing and writing about ideas is a form of play that develops a huge array of competencies for the challenges that students will encounter in adult life. How wonderful it would be if parents and college-admissions officers would view play, rather than slavish résumé building, as a vital part of the preparation for the great play experience of a college education."
RON MEYERS
New York
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