Double Entry Journal #9

Copy and paste three quotes that have moved you in some way (i.e. surprised, confused, disagree, strongly agree). Then in a paragraph state why you have selected each quote and include a hyperlink to an online article, blog posting, video, or podcase related to what you have read.

Quotes:

1. "Young children work hard at play. They invent scenes and stories, solve problems, and negotiate their way through social roadblocks. They know what they want to do and work diligently to do it. Because their motivation comes from within, they learn the powerful lesson of pursuing their own ideas to a successful conclusion."
2. "Research shows that children who engage in complex forms of socio-dramatic play have greater language skills than nonplayers, better social skills, more empathy, more imagination, and more of the subtle capacity to know what others mean. They are less aggressive and show more self-control and higher levels of thinking."
3. "Kindergartners are now under great pressure to meet inappropriate expectations, including academic standards that until recently were reserved for first grade. At the same time, they are being denied the benefits of play—a major stress reliever. This double burden, many experts believe, is contributing to a rise in anger and aggression in young children, reflected in increasing reports of severe behavior problems."

Paragraph:
         Young children need to have play time where they can learn and grow, and not have to worry about instructional time. I chose the first quote because I do believe that when they are left to use their imagination, children will make and solve problems. When children are able to use their own ideas, it is simply amazing the things that they come up with. This does teach them intristic motivation, where they achieve things for themselves instead of outside rewards. When children are playing, they don't realize they are learning. They just think that it's fun time. I chose the second quote because I thought it was very interesting that research shows that children playing is beneficial. I think this is a very important point that the national needs to consider. Students are so much more rambunchious now than they used to be, could this be due to the fact that they don't get time to simply play? I don't think it's just a concidence. I believe that if children had time to be children, the world would be a happier place. I also believe that instead of teaching to the test, teachers should go back to the place where learning (and teaching) was fun. Students would be more at peace and want to come to school because learning is fun. The standardized testing takes all the fun out of learning now. I chose the third quote because I do believe that the bar has been raised. Kindergarten used to be the year of introduction to school, learning the alphabet and numbers, having time for play, nap time, snack. Kindergarten was fun. Today, it has shifted to mostly instructional time with a little bit of fun time. There is way too much expected of them at that young of an age. When I was in Kindergarten, we went every other day with ample time to play and have fun. They are now expected to go everyday and basically sit and do work the entire day. Children get restless and need to have time to get that energy out. In my opinion, children should be allowed to be children in Kindergarten.

Related resource:
Top 10 Signs of a Good Kindergarten Classroom