Nickelodeon is inspiring kids to embrace the transformative power of play and lead active lifestyles with its annual Worldwide Day of Play on Saturday, September 29.

2018 marks the 15th year of Nickelodeon’s Worldwide Day of Play (WWDoP).  Once again, the US Play Coalition is a partner with Nickelodeon for this important and FUN-omenal endeavor!  This year, the US Play Coalition helped to craft the official 2018 Partner Playbook, a planning guide for grassroots play events, complete with tips on ways to celebrate play and play activity ideas from US Play Coalition and other national partners like Afterschool Alliance, Boys & Girls Clubs of America; Girl Scouts of the USA, Kiwanis; Laureus Sport for Good, National Fitness Foundation, NFL PLAY 60, Playworks, Police Athletic League, Special Olympics, The Aspen Institute and USA BMX.

So get inspired by WWDoP and plan a Play Day in YOUR community!  It doesn’t have to be September 29 – Play Day can be any day!  Visit http://www.worldwidedayofplay.com/ for tips on ways to celebrate play and the official 2018 Playbook to help plan your own Worldwide Day of Play activities.

Check out the US Play Coalition’s Road to the Worldwide Day of Play event…!

4^th Annual Clemson Community Play Day
Saturday, September 22, 11:00am-2:00pm
Nettles Park, Clemson, SC

The US Play Coalition and Clemson Parks and Rec are teaming up again for our annual Clemson Community Play Day as part of Nickelodeon’s Road to the Worldwide Day of Play. Our friends from Clemson University, the Outdoor Lab and Pickens County First Steps will be there too!  Join us for inflatables, games, crafts, photo ops and more!!! There will be a designated toddler play space AND opportunities to get wet!!  It’s FREE fun for all ages! Pack a lunch and stay for a while!  GET UP, GET OUT & GO PLAY!

2016 marks the 13th year of Nickelodeon’s Worldwide Day of Play (WWDoP).  On WWDoP, Nickelodeon goes completely dark for three hours, taking programming off the air on all of its channels and shutting down its websites to reinforce one simple message: get up, get out, and go play!  Once again, the US Play Coalition is a partner with Nickelodeon for this important and FUN-omenal endeavor!

This week, the US Play Coalition has a series of events – educational events and PLAY events – as part of the 3rd annual “Road to Worldwide Day of Play.”  These are events leading up to the big day on September 17:

Tuesday, August 23 at 2:00pm EST, on Twitter

#WePlayChat – “Back to School” Twitter chat on “The Importance of Recess” with co-moderator Debbie Rhea of the LIINK Project

Dr. Rhea and the “Let’s Inspire Innovation ‘N Kids” (LIINK) team has been making headlines with their incredible work to get more and more frequent recess in the daily school schedule.  Their successes in Texas elementary schools have gone viral!  Recent news from across the country shows a growing trend in recognizing the value of recess:

• Rhode Island now requiring recess by law
• All elementary school children in the Austin, TX school district starting this fall will get 30 minutes of unstructured play time at recess, under a plan supported by district administrators.
• And in Miami, “The politics of play time: Moms take to school boards, elections”

Join us for this FREE professional learning opportunity and connect with fellow play enthusiasts, teachers and experts from the across the globe from the comfort of your own environs.

 

Thursday, August 25, 10:00am-11:00am EST, Washington, D.C. – Expert Panel: The Value of Play

US Play Coalition co-founder Fran Mainella will be a panelist on this discussion moderated by Clemson University faculty member Dr. Barry Garst (who is also a Play Conference presenter and volunteer!).  This panel, that includes other distinguished experts, is part of a special one day workshop on Summertime Opportunities to Promote Healthy Child and Adolescent Development by The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine’s Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education. To register to participate, click here.

 

Thursday, August 25 – 100th Birthday of the National Park Service!

This Thursday, August 25th, the National Park Service celebrates its 100th birthday and you’re invited! On August 25, 1916, President Woodrow Wilson signed the National Park Service Organic Act into law, creating the National Park Service.  Did you know that our co-founder, Fran Mainella, was the FIRST woman to be the director of the National Parks Service??!!  She wants to make sure that you know there are 412 national park units and ALL NATIONAL PARKS ARE FEE FREE from August 25th through August 28th!  So GO PLAY in your favorite National Park! #FindYourPark

 

Saturday, August 27, 12:00-3:00pm EST, Nettles Park, Clemson, SC – Clemson Community Play Day

We are teaming up locally with the City of Clemson to have a Clemson Community Play Day as part of Nickelodeon’s Road to the Worldwide Day of Play.  Our friends at the Outdoor Lab and OLLI at Clemson University are also coming out to PLAY!  Join us for kids zumba, inflatables, YUMMY treats, games, crafts, Pickleball, photos with the Clemson Tiger and much more!!! It’s FREE fun for all ages! GET UP, GET OUT & GO PLAY!

 

Sunday, August 28, 2:15-3:45pm EST, Fluor Field, Greenville, SC – Play Day at Fluor Field 2016

The US Play Coalition is partnering with The Greenville Drive for another PLAY DAY AT FLUOR FIELD!  Pre-game festivities include field access to play games like blob tag, whiffle ball and relay races on the award winning Fluor Field outfield grass. Plus crafts, PLAY tattoos and a photobooth will be on the concourse near the team store! Following the on-field fun, participants will cheer on the Drive as they take on the Asheville Tourists at 4 pm. Be sure to stick around until the final out as kids will run the bases after the game!

Discounted Tickets in the Play Coalition section are just $8. Click HERE to order online or call the Drive Box Office at 864-240-4528.