My Connections to Play

Quotes that represent play in my childhood:

Images that remind me of play from my childhood:

Growing up I had a pool in my back yard and from the minute it was open for the season until it was closed thats where you could find me. I loved playing in the water, my family always referred to me as a fish because if they let me I would stay in the water all day.

This picture reminds me of my childhood because I lived in a neighborhood full of kids and we would all play together. I can remember countless games of street hockey, man hunt, and flashlight tag.

My parents played a huge role in my play because they encouraged my brother and I to be outside and not stay in on a nice day watching T.V. or playing video games. Being in a neighborhood full of other kids around my age or my brother's I think played a part as well because we would all play with each other and our entire block was our playground. If I was not doing chores or homework I was playing as a child it was very rare that I would just lounge around watching T.V. unless I was home sick or it was family movie night.

Reflecting back to what play looked like when I was a kid to how play is now I see a huge difference. I see children who struggle playing outside and being able to use their imagination and I see a world of dramatic play surrounded by media such as movies and video games. I also see parents with strict boundaries of outside play due to the change of culture. I do not see play the same way I see it when I was a child. I feel play played a very big role in my life it helped me to be creative and hard working. It also taught me how to interact with other people of different ages and to be respectful. The lessons I learned and skills I gained from play are still things I benefit from in adulthood.

Relationship Reflection

Relationships are important to me because they are my safety net. They are the people who I trust and can fall back on when I am having a hard time or I am unsure about something. They are a give and take I am there for them and they are there for me. Most of the people with whom I value our relationship are family; my husband, my parents, my brother, my niece, and grandparents. My childhood friend is also someone who I have a strong relationship with as well. My relationships over the years has developed into more of a partnership where before my parents took care of me and I did not contribute very much back but my love for them. No was an adult we have more of a back and forth were I can help support them and do things for them and vis versa. My relationship for my brother has also changed over the years where we did not talk or communicate with one another but have now developed a mutual respect and friendship with one another, I help him take care of his daughter and do things with her and he helps me with various things when he can; we do these things not because we have to because we are siblings but because we want to. My relationship with my niece is very positive, she is always teaching me new thing because she looks at thing in different ways than I would and I am always learning from her. My grandparents' relationship is they always have a story that I have never heard I learn so much from their life experiences and gain culture from them and in return I provide them with company. For all of my family relationships I mentioned I keep our relationships going through family get togethers,letters, and technology such as instant messages, skype, o r email. My childhood friend and I know each other very well we can tell what type of mood one another is in and what we need just through nonverbal cues, we are each other's confidants when we can't go to our spouses or they are the ones driving us crazy. We keep our relationship going through social media, phone, and email. We live in different states now but we make time for each other to visit throughout the year. My husband and I are what I consider in a partnership, we are partners in crime he is someone I feel most comfortable with being myself. We constantly help each other and enjoy each other's company we keep this relationship/partnership through constant communication and trust. Challenges that come with having meaningful relationships and partnerships is that they take a lot of work and time and there are going to be rough patches throughout the relationship. What I have to take away from my personal relationships that I can apply to my work as an early childhood profession is patience, hard work, and caring for others needs.

This photo sums up my partnership with my husband and I!