For this Discussion, we will be discussing Culture and Gender in Play. How would you plan play experiences for everybody? I don’t have to tell you what a very important topic it has become in our society!
What have you researched about play and the various cultures? As you know, we are fortunate enough to have people from many different cultures in our class. Multicultural play is so great to offer to children (and adults). What’s your idea?
This discussion will be open until Fri., Oct. 18 at noon.
PEER EXAMPLE:
Focusing on common topics that everyone can connect to regardless of their culture or gender background would help me to arrange play events for everyone. Planning play events around universal concepts like collaboration, tales, or problem-solving can help obtain this concept. These principles are common in every culture and let people express themselves uniquely while promoting inclusiveness. Making a group art project or a shared activity would let everyone offer something unique while cooperating toward a shared objective. This promotes perspective-taking, a fundamental cognitive ability at the concrete operational stage—described in Chapter 6—where kids learn to redirect and examine multiple aspects of a task.
Organizing a multicultural game night when attendees from all backgrounds discuss traditional games they grew up playing might also be a good approach. Along with adding new activities, this would promote cultural interaction and education to those who would show up. The concept of game diffusion emphasizes, as covered in Chapter 7, how games might cross cultural divides and connect individuals via common play experiences. Then participants might try each other’s games, therefore increasing appreciation of every culture’s particular contributions to play. In addition to considering gender dynamics in play, I would make sure the activities include both competitive and cooperative aspects because, as shown in Chapter 7, boys and girls tend to gravitate toward various kinds of play depending on social factors. Offering both kinds of play gives kids chances to participate in whatever seems more appropriate or difficult for them, therefore fostering gender inclusion in a manner that honors differences and provides an environment for common experiences.
Another opportunity for establishing a common play experience is building an interactive website where individuals from all backgrounds might exchange their traditional games. Participants would be able to post childhood game descriptions along with rules and any cultural relevance related to them on this site. This allows everyone to look into games by nation or location, thereby learning about the play of children throughout the globe. This would promote an immersive, cross-cultural interaction wherein everyone gets the chance to explore new kinds of play and value the variety of customs independent of their own culture and/or gender. This approach also relates to the idea of game diffusion, as covered in Chapter 7, which explains how historically games and play activities have gone beyond cultural barriers. Providing a virtual environment for sharing these customs will not only promote inclusiveness but also help in the preservation of cultural history and open it to others. By means of this platform, we would be motivating adults and children equally to interact with new play environments, therefore promoting empathy and understanding across cultures. Moreover, the website may provide filters or categories so that users may choose games according on their physical ability, the number of players, or the kind of play (cooperative vs. competitive), therefore guaranteeing accessibility and participation from all genders and age groups. As covered in Chapter 6, this strategy would encourage inclusive play and perspective-taking—qualities necessary for the development of good self-esteem and social acceptance. Schools, community activities, or even family gaming evenings might find use for this internet resource.
Finally, making sure there is a mix between free play and controlled activities might also be helpful. Research from Chapter 8—where play is included into curriculum design—show indicates that children learn best when their play is both self-directed and scaffolded by an adult. We therefore satisfy developmental requirements by offering a range of play opportunities where children may either follow prescribed norms or express their creativity freely, thereby recognizing cultural and gender effects on play.
Based on the research I did, I found that different historical ideas have affected the perspective of play – Sigmund Freud’s psychosexual development stresses play as a technique of working through emotions; Lev Vygotsky’s social development theory holds that play is essential for cognitive and social progress. Play was greatly changed in educational settings by child theorists like Maria Montessori and Jean Piaget. While Montessori advocated play as necessary for self-directed learning, Piaget thought play reflected phases of cognitive development, therefore shaping early teaching. I also found that certain views regarding play are much shaped by cultural viewpoints. Western societies, for example, give individualistic play experiences top priority, whereas collectivist societies would stress group play, therefore reflecting different ideals in socializing and early development.
PEER EXAMPLE:
Reply from Lauryn Carranco
When thinking about play experiences for everyone the first thing that comes to mind would have to be, creating a welcoming environment. This is an important fundamental step because this will make all people feel welcome to take part in the play, not matter how inclusive the play may be, if people don’t feel welcomed to play it doesn’t matter. I have researched that taking part in inclusive play doesn’t have to be as daunting as people may make it seem. One way we can foster this kind of play can be initiating role-playing/imaginative games where children can actively act out stories from different cultures, encouraging them to step into the shoes of someone from a different background. This is important when learning about people other than themselves knowing not everyone has the same life and experiences that they may have. In also did some research on the traditional games of some cultures other than mine. I grew up with a hispanic background and my grandparents fostered the idea of our culture from a young age so I would play “Lotería” however games like “Dara” from Africa, or “Kabaddi” from India can up in my research as well. These different games can help children and adults appreciate the uniqueness and similarities between cultures.
Taking part in multicultural play is very important especially to children to set that foundation that there is not just one culture and to broaden their perspective further than their own. Children’s minds are very absorbent and being able to teach this type of play can be very important in the long run when it comes to inclusion and acceptance of all because after all children learn from the examples around them so the more they can be surrounded by this type of play the better. It can also strengthen their sense of self in the process.
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