“When we are playing, we are profoundly in the moment.” – Jill Vialet, Playworks CEO and Founder.
More than 100 teachers, parents, youth workers and several dozen children were profoundly in the moment at Play On 2012 in Santa Monica. Participants were full of smiles, enjoyed insightful conversation, gained valuable tools and had great fun. And at the end of the day, they had learned they can really make a difference in children’s lives. It just takes some training to get started.
“I have the power to change the mentality of children everywhere,” one participant told us after the day. Play On began with Kevin Carroll’s inspirational personal story on why play is not only serious business, but how play can save a life. Kevin then moderated a panel of play experts who discussed social and emotional learning, empathy, bullying prevention and other issues from the playgrounds. The panel offered insight into what individuals and communities can do to improve their play environment. You can watch an archive of our livestream from the day here.
After two hours of hands-on training, participants walked away with the confidence to jump in the action on the playground, engage kids, and “bring back tag in a safe way to play in schools,” one of the participants noted. This confidence is at your fingertips too. With a little bit of training, you’ll have the skills to make a difference and know “how to make it fun for kids to follow rules in a game without screaming our lungs out”.
Plus who wouldn’t want to put these smiles on kids’ faces (as the Playworks Southern California coaches did for the day):
