Play has a magical way of making us feel happy and good about ourselves.
Many children around the world never get the chance to play. Sometimes it’s because their countries have been at war or face extreme poverty and disease. Some children were forced to fight as soldiers and forgot how to play, how to be childlike and joyful, and can’t forget the horrors they have seen or forgive themselves for what they have done. Others never learned to play because they had to work long hours in hot factories or out in the fields, or take on the role of parenting their younger brothers and sisters. And in some places certain children just aren’t allowed to play because they are girls or have a physical disability.
For over a decade the humanitarian organization Right To Play has been helping to bring laughter and smiles into the lives of the world’s most disadvantages children. They’ve seen first-hand when children play the world wins.
Review
Ultimately, this well-written and researched book reminds us that we are all part of the global village and responsible for each other. Hopefully, reading When Children Play will spur some readers to social action. Highly Recommended.
Gail Hamilton is a former teacher-librarian in Winnipeg, MB.
For more: http://www.umanitoba.ca/outreach/cm/vol20/no10/whenchildrenplay.html
It is a joy to read McMurchy’s book. Her writing style finds that wonderful middle ground between grammatical perfection and conversational ease. She knows to whom she speaks: children in the upper elementary grades. The information she provides, as well as the examples she chooses, would engage the attention of this age group. Credit goes to the RTP organization for providing the realistic and heart-warming photographs accompanying the text. Highly Recommended: 4 out of 4 stars
Reviewer: Leslie Aitken, former Curriculum Librarian of the University of Alberta. For more: https://journals.library.ualberta.ca/deakinreview/index.php/deakinreview/article/view/29306
