Hello! This is Joyce Hemphill, and I am one of guest bloggers for the US Play Coalition.
So who am I? Many of my colleagues refer to me as the “Queen of Play.” I think of myself as a Play Advocate – someone who promotes the value of play. Simply put, I am passionate about play. AND I want others to be equally enthusiastic about play.
My background in and expertise on play comes from two sides – my personal side as the parent of two sons, now grown, and the professional side as a professor of child development. The mom side has 28 years of hands-on experience watching my sons. I was fascinated by the ways they learned about their world and gained an understanding of who they were through their various adventures in play.
The professional side of me holds a doctorate in developmental psychology and almost 30 years of college classroom experience teaching infant and child development as well as cognition and learning. While at the University of Wisconsin-Madison I developed and taught a course on the Importance of Play in Child Development. The course included a service learning component whereby my students and I offered a “PlayDay,” a community play event.
After retiring from UW spring 2012 I began writing “Playing from Scratch” columns for the US Play Coalition and co-authored The Power of Playful Learning (2014) with Laura Scheinholtz and Heather Von Bank. In addition, I started giving workshops for teachers, parents, families, youth groups, and care providers on ways to create playful learning activities. These hands-on experiences have been complemented with my involvement with the Coalition, as well as the American Association for the Child’s Right to Play, The Association for the Study of Play, and the National Association for the Education of Young Children.
As a guest blogger I will share my thoughts on the different types of play, the various benefits of play, and the way play changes as a child grows and develops. Included will be tips, suggestions, and helpful information for parents and care providers. I also hope to increase my understanding of play from your questions and your insights of children’s play behaviors. So until next time, I leave you with a quote from American poet and essayist, Diane Ackerman, who said, “Play is our brain’s favorite way to learn.”
YiP (Yours in Play)
Joyce