61 Play Resources for leaders, parents, educators and more

Mar 26, 2020 | Play

Here is something that many people don’t realize: I read books on play and hang out with early childhood educators once a month in a play book club I belong to. I’m a bit of an outlier as my background differs. These resources are not just for educators, they are also for parents, leaders, and those in organizations. In my mind these books and this list of resources are for all of us.  The connection may not necessarily be clear cut, but  I can tell you there is wealth of learning in this list which speaks to:

  • the importance of play and its importance throughout the lifespan.
  • relationship, connection and communication.
  • what it means to be human and the human condition in general.
  • change, learning, growth and development. As we all know, this doesn’t stop when we graduate high school or college.

My challenge is to write on joy every day for the month of March so I am publishing this list today as I think it is a timely share, and I hope to provide the backstory behind our book club in a future update to this post (awaiting permissions). I also plan to update this post with additional resources as time goes on.

I hope you enjoy these books, videos and articles as much as I have. I don’t necessarily endorse all the opinions expressed in some of the resources, but I have benefitted from the discussions, concepts and ideas. Maybe you’ll develop a play book club too!

  1. A Child’s Work: The importance of fantasy play, by Vivian Gussin Paley
  2. A Mandate for Playful Learning in Preschool, by Kathy Hirsh-Pasek, Roberta Michnick   Golinkhoff, Laura Berk & Dorothy Singer
  3. A Nation of Wimps ~ The High Cost of Invasive Parenting, by Hara Estroff Marano
  4. All Joy and No Fun, by Jennifer Senior
  5. Ambiguity of Play, The, by Brian Sutton-Smith
  6. An Everyone Culture ~ Becoming a Deliberately Developmental Organization, by Robert Kegan and Lisa Laskow Lahey
  7. Boy and Girls: Super Heroes in the Doll Corner, by Vivian Gussin Paley
  8. Brain Rules, by John Medina
  9. Case for Make Believe: Saving play in a commercialized world, The, by Susan Winn
  10. Children At Play: An American History (YouTube):  http://youtu.be/201hGBiFdjY, by Howard Chudacoff
  11. Choice Time: How to Deepen Learning Through Inquiry and Play, PreK-2, by Renee Dinnerstein
  12. Coddling of the American Mind,The ~ How good Intentions and Bad Ideas are Setting Up a Generation for Failure, by Jonathan Haidt, Greg Lukianoff
  13. Dance of Interaction, by Jeanine Fitzgerald
  14. Don’t get so upset! Help young children manage their feelings by understanding your own, by Tamar Jacobsen
  15. Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us, by Daniel Pink
  16. Einstein Never Used Flashcards, by Kathy Hirsh-Pasek & Roberta Michnick Golinkhoff
  17. Free Range Kids, by Lenore Skenazy
  18. Free to Learn: why unleashing the instinct to play will make our children happier, more self-reliant, and better students for life, by Peter Gray
  19. From Play to Practice ~ Connecting Teachers Play to Children’s Learning, by Marcia L Neil, Walter F. Drew with Deborah E. Bush
  20. Girl without a Brown Crayon, by Vivian Gussin Paley
  21. How Children Succeed, by Paul Tough
  22. Hundred Languages of Children (The): The Reggio Emilia Experience in Transformation, by Carolyn Edwards, Lella Gandini, et al.
  23. Importance of Being Little: What Preschoolers Really Need from Grownups, The, by Erika Christakis
  24. It’s OK to Go Up the Slide: Renegade Rules for Raising Confident and Creative Kids, by Heather Shumaker
  25. It’s OK NOT to Share . . . and other renegade rules for raising competent and compassionate kids, by Heather Shumakeer
  26. Kids First from Day One: A Teacher’s Guide to Today’s Classroom, by Christine Hertz and Kristine Mraz
  27. Land, The – documentary trailer at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kR7QeqLhhSA
  28. Let Them Play! An Early Learning (Un)Curriculum, by Jeff Johnson & Denita Dinger
  29. Lisa Murphy on Play: The Foundation of Children’s Learning, by Lisa Murphy.
  30. Lost Child in the Woods, by Richard Louv
  31. Magic Trees of the Mind: How to Nurture your Child’s Intelligence, Creativity, and Healthy Emotions from Birth Through Adolescence, by Marian Diamond, Janet Hopson
  32. Mind in the Making, by Ellen Galinsky
  33. Mindset ~ The New Psychology of Success, by Carol Dweek
  34. Nurture Shock: New thinking about children, by Po Bronson & Ashley Merryman
  35. Play Anything: The Pleasure of Limits, the Uses of Boredom, and the Secret of Games, by Ian Bogost
  36. Play ~ How it Shapes the Brain, Opens the imagination, and Invigorates the Soul, by Stuart Brown
  37. Play: The Foundation that Supports the House of Higher Learning, by Lisa Murphy
  38. Purposeful Play: A Teacher’s Guide to Igniting Deep and Joyful Learning Across the Day, by Kristine Mraz and Alison Porcelli
  39. Ready or Not, by Stacie Goffin & Valora Washington
  40. Really Seeing Children, by Deb Curtis
  41. Reclaiming Childhood: Letting children be children in our achievement, by Willima Crain
  42. Savage Park: A Meditation on Play, Space, and Risk for Americans Who Are Nervous, Distracted, and Afraid to Die, by Amy Fusselman
  43. Saving Play: Addressing Standards through Play-Based Learning in Preschool and Kindergarten, by Gaye Gronlund, Thomas Rendon.
  44. Serious Fun ~ How Guided Play Extends Children’s Learning (Powerful Playful Learning), by Marie L. Masterson, Holly Bohart
  45. Sun’s Not Broken, A Cloud’s Just in the Way: On Child-Centered Teaching, The, by Sydney Clemens
  46. Swinging Pendulums: Cautionary Tales for Early Childhood Education, by Carol Garhart Mooney
  47. Taking Back Childhood: A Proven Roadmap for Raising Confident, Creative, Compassionate Kids, by Nancy Carlsson-Paige
  48. Classrooms All Young Children Need: Lessons in Teaching from Vivian Paley, The, by Patricia M. Cooper
  49. Goodness of Rain ~ Developing an Ecological Identity in Young Children, The, by Ann Pelo
  50. Great Disconnect in Early Childhood Education: What We Know vs. What We Do, The, by Michael Gramling
  51. To Change What  We Do, Consider What We Believe (Article) , which is an essay adapted from Kohn’s forward for the book, The Teacher You Want to Be, Edited by Matt Glover & Ellin Oliver Keene    https://www.alfiekohn.org/article/do-believe/ – by Alfie Kohn
  52. Waking Up White, by Debby Irving
  53. War Play Dilemma:  What Every Parent and Teacher Needs to Know, The, by Diane E. Levin and Nancy Carlsson-Paige
  54. Weapons of Mass Instruction: A school teacher’s journey through the dark world of compulsory schooling, by John Tayor Gatto
  55. What Does it Mean to be Well Educated? And more essays on standards, grading and other follies, by Alfie Kohn
  56. What Happened to Recess and WHY Are Our Children Struggling in Kindergarten, by Susan Ohanian
  57. When – The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing, by Daniel Pink
  58. Where did you go? Out. What did you do? Nothing, by Robert Paul Smith
  59. White Teacher, by Vivian Gussin Paley
  60. Whole Brain Child, The, by Daniel J. Siegel, M.D. and Tina Payne Bryson, Ph.D.
  61. You Can’t Say, You Can’t Play, by Vivian Gussin Paley

Also, here is a post entitled War Play and Rough & Tumble Play – do they have value for adults, this post includes another list of books which you might also find worth your while.

What does this post have to do with joy? It is simply a joy to be a part of this book club, to be involved in the ongoing discussions as well to engage with so many wonderful resources and to share them with you.

Enjoy the stories and have a playful day,