Playful Life - The Power of Play in Our Every Day

Do you find yourself wanting more out of life? It's time to bring play to your every day
 
Play is not just for kids! There are many reasons we need play in our lives. The Playful Life shows you why and how to bring more playfulness to all aspects of your life. You'll explore how to create meaningful, relevant, and fun experiences for yourself and others through both a playful mindset and playful behaviors. Through research and 20+ years of teaching children and adults, authors Dr. Julie Jones and Jed Dearybury have found that play is not only fun, it's essential to a full life. In this book, they share their knowledge and inspire you to reflect on the need for connection and joy for healthy living through play.
 
This book will equip you with new definitions, ideas, and ways of thinking about play for your daily life. With a relaxed tone, comical banter, and real talk, the authors encourage new understandings about what play is and empower you to make more playful choices. If you strive to find balance, overcome stress, and enjoy each day through play--The Playful Life is a must read for your life journey!
* Learn what play means and why it's so essential to our everyday lives--at every age
* Discover the incredible benefits of play to your physical and mental health
* Get ideas for incorporating play into your everyday life at work, at home, or when you're out and about
* Begin healing past traumas and grow into the person you are meant to be--through play and playful living!
 
Building on the popular book The Playful Classroom, this is a new and exciting take on what play does for all of us-- physically, socially, emotionally, and cognitively.

List of contents

Hey Y'All xiii
 
Foreword xv
 
About the Authors xvii
 
Acknowledgments xix
 
Section One Meaning
 
1 Wanna Play? 3
 
2 Defining Play 11
 
3 Play as a Behavior 15
 
4 Play as a Mindset 19
 
5 Cultivating a Playful Mindset 31
 
Play & Ponder 41
 
Section Two Memory
 
6 Things We Learned from Playing 47
 
7 Cognitive Benefits of Play 51
 
8 Social Emotional Benefits of Play 56
 
9 Physical Benefits of Play 62
 
10 Play Personalities 65
 
Play & Ponder 77
 
Section Three Mind
 
11 Biological Predilection 81
 
12 This Is Your Brain. This Is Your Brain on Play 89
 
13 The Default Mode Network and Flow 96
 
14 Playful Habits 104
 
15 Play as Healing 115
 
Play & Ponder 127
 
Section Four Mistakes
 
16 Low-Risk/High-Risk Play 133
 
17 The Learning and Growth Process (RISK) 139
 
18 Mistakes and Fear 142
 
19 Excuses Are Mistakes 148
 
20 A Path to Eliminating Excuses 152
 
Play & Ponder 161
 
Section Five Movement
 
21 When Play Is Missing 165
 
22 Start with Yourself 169
 
23 Grow and Play with Friends 175
 
24 Play in Our Communities 180
 
25 You Don't Have to Run a Marathon 183
 
26 Advocating Through Play 190
 
Play & Ponder 197
 
Section Six Mojo
 
27 Ned Barrett 201
 
28 Tashma Glymph 204
 
29 Sonia Aleman 208
 
30 Joan Wheatley 211
 
31 Marjorie Boafo Appiah 214
 
32 Tina Arenas 218
 
33 Matt Leung 222
 
34 Balance 225
 
Play & Ponder 233
 
Section Seven Map
 
35 Play Alone 237
 
36 Play with Friends or Family 248
 
37 Play with Strangers 258
 
38 Play as a Community 270
 
Play & Ponder 279
 
Southernisms and Their Meanings 281
 
References 285
 
Index 291

About the author

Dr. JULIE P. JONES, PhD, is the Director for Teacher Education in Converse University's School of Education and Graduate Studies. In addition to The Playful Classroom (2020), she maintains an active research agenda with interests including instructional technology and pedagogy, always with a mix of creativity and play. Follow her on Twitter @JuliePJones, and view her full curriculum vitae at www.juliepjones.com. JED DEARYBURY began his EDU career in 2001. He was featured in GQ magazine as Male Leader of the Year, met President Obama as the SC honoree of the Presidential Award for Excellence in Math and Science Teaching, and was a finalist for SC Teacher of the Year. In 2015, he began leading professional development and teaching in higher education. His previous books include The Playful Classroom (2020) and The Courageous Classroom (2021).

Summary

Do you find yourself wanting more out of life? It's time to bring play to your every day

Play is not just for kids! There are many reasons we need play in our lives. The Playful Life shows you why and how to bring more playfulness to all aspects of your life. You'll explore how to create meaningful, relevant, and fun experiences for yourself and others through both a playful mindset and playful behaviors. Through research and 20+ years of teaching children and adults, authors Dr. Julie Jones and Jed Dearybury have found that play is not only fun, it's essential to a full life. In this book, they share their knowledge and inspire you to reflect on the need for connection and joy for healthy living through play.

This book will equip you with new definitions, ideas, and ways of thinking about play for your daily life. With a relaxed tone, comical banter, and real talk, the authors encourage new understandings about what play is and empower you to make more playful choices. If you strive to find balance, overcome stress, and enjoy each day through play--The Playful Life is a must read for your life journey!
* Learn what play means and why it's so essential to our everyday lives--at every age
* Discover the incredible benefits of play to your physical and mental health
* Get ideas for incorporating play into your everyday life at work, at home, or when you're out and about
* Begin healing past traumas and grow into the person you are meant to be--through play and playful living!

Building on the popular book The Playful Classroom, this is a new and exciting take on what play does for all of us-- physically, socially, emotionally, and cognitively.

Report

"The Playful Life is a gem! So many practical and easily implemented ideas to make every day more joyful and fun! Julie P. Jones and Jed Dearbury have struck the perfect balance of providing inspiring and meaningful anecdotes alongside tons of actionable things we can do immediately to make life more playful. The book is timely, practical, and a must-read!"
--Adam Bellow, CEO and Co-Founder of Breakout EDU
 
"In A Playful Classroom, Dearybury and Jones demonstrated how play could lead to deeper thinking, improved creativity, and better social-emotional skills. This book builds on that foundation by sharing how play can be an end in itself rather than a means to an end. While the style is playful and approachable, the book is a deep reading, proving that play is actually a very serious topic. The book offers a more expansive view of play, including both a behavior and a mindset. Play is collecting things. Play is building and making. Play is imagination. Play is creative risk-taking. The authors provide practical ideas and strategies you can implement tomorrow."
--John Spencer, Professor/Author
 
"This book expertly and joyfully allows the reader to engage and learn the benefit of having a 'playful brain and mindset' to face our challenges and overcome obstacles. Playing better at life may be the antidote that lifts folks out of an exhausted existence and into the space of fun, humor, laughter and showing life who's living it."
--Dr. Janet Taylor, Psychiatrist, Author The Courageous Classroom
 
"Jed and Julie's, The Playful Life, inspires the reader to go beyond the bounds of societal expectations and engage the world joyfully, expressively, and eagerly, returning to us the eyes of a child. With rejuvenated vision, we can see our experiences and communities with a sense of wonder and curiosity about the possibilities, allowing us not just to think, but dream big...AGAIN!"
--Natalia Rosario, Urban Planner
 
"Play is more important and more necessary than ever, and Julie and Jed are experts on the subject -- and what's more, expert guides to help us all cultivate a more playful approach to life. Stop what you're doing and READ THIS BOOK. I guarantee your future, more playful self will be grateful you did."
--Jarrett Lerner, Author, Illustrator
 
"What a fun read (which I suppose to be expected from a book about the art of play, but one never knows)!!! No matter who you are, this humorous and informative book will remind you of the importance of play and of the wide-eyed, childlike enthusiasm for life we adults tend to forget. This is the first book I've read that told me to stop reading and go do a spontaneous activity that brings me joy...which inspired me to go do said spontaneous thing, but then immediately return to the book to see what other wonderful advice it held."
--M. Judson Berry, actor/ writer
 
"Play connects us. Play heals. Play helps us learn. But in modern life, play is a forgotten art, a casualty of our test and work-obsessed culture that isolates us from what makes us human. TPL is an ode to play, written in a heartfelt romp that model's playfulness itself. Jed and Julie teach us that play isn't simply what we do; it's a mindset we hone, a skill that we sharpen, a habit that we build, and so much more. And whether we're looking to engage life or avoid burnout ourselves, it all begins with the relationship we explore with our own inner child."
--Takeru 'TK' Nagayoshi, 2020 Massachusetts Teacher of the Year
 
"Hopelessness is chronic, and stress is a silent killer. Due to such painful realities in life, intentionality in healthy mental hygiene has become more imperative now than ever before. In The Playful Life, amazing authors Dr. Julie Jones and Mr. Jed Dearybury serve us up heaping and happy doses of cheerful perspectives, brimming with life-applicable lessons and amusing dashes of hilarity. I felt my world de-stressing with each and every word and I became more playful with every jot and tittle!"
--Marvin Rogers, Author and Wine Industry Executive
 
"We have evolved to play. It is in our DNA. It is part of our human story since the beginning of time. Without it, our lives long for fullness. As someone who walked away from two decades of a playless life to fully embrace my playful spirit, I strongly encourage you to read this book and join me in living a playful life."
--Darryl Edwards, Founder/CEO Primal Play, author, movement coach
 
"This book feels like you're having a conversation with two friends while simultaneously learning an immense amount of information in the process. The way Jed and Julie's playful candor helps you take in all that you're reading and digest it. And boy did we eat it up. Highly recommend this book to anyone looking to educate themselves on the importance of play, the importance of self, and the importance of the curious world around you."
--PJ and Thomas McKay
 
"As an educator and public speaker across the nation, it's my job to engage people with laughter and learning. At the heart of that work is the power of play. After reading Jed and Julie's book, I now understand all the more just how important playfulness is to life. Read this asap. You won't regret it!"
--Gerry Brooks, lifetime educator and public speaker

Product details

• Authors: Jed Dearybury, Jed Jones Dearybury, Jones, Jp Jones, Julie P Jones, Julie P. Jones, Julie P. Dearybury Jones
• Publisher: Wiley, John and Sons Ltd
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 31.12.2021
• EAN: 9781119882008
• ISBN: 978-1-119-88200-8
• No. of pages: 320
• Subjects: Guides > Self-help, everyday life > Family; Humanities, art, music > Education > Education system; Schule, Education, Bildungswesen, K-12, K-12 / Lehren u. Lernen, Teaching & Learning (K-12)