The War Play Dilemma: What Every Parent and Teacher Needs to Know / Edition 2

by Diane E. Levin, Nancy Carlsson-Paige, Leslie R. Williams

Overview

As violence in the media and media-linked toys increases, parents and teachers are also seeing an increase in children’s war play. The authors have revised this popular text to provide more practical guidance for working with children to promote creative play, and for positively influencing the lessons about violence children are learning.

Using a developmental and sociopolitical viewpoint, the authors examine five possible strategies for resolving the war play dilemma and show which best satisfy both points of view: banning war play; taking a laissez-faire approach; allowing war play with specified limits; actively facilitating war play; and limiting war play while providing alternative ways to work on the issues.

New for the Second Edition:

• More anecdotal material about adults’ and children’s experiences with war play, including examples from both home and school settings.
• Greater emphasis on the impact of media and commercialization on children’s war play, including recent trends in media, programming, marketing, and war toys.
• Expanded discussion about the importance of the distinction between imitative and creative war play.
• Summary boxes of key points directed at teachers or parents.
• New information about violent video games, media cross feeding, and gender development and sex-role stereotyping.
• A more extensive list of resources and further reading for adults and children.

Praise for the First Edition!

“Powerful…A wealth of practical suggestions for parents and teachers.”;

—Young Children

“Comprehensive and useful…Educators who read this book and implement its suggestions will be making an important contribution to a peaceful future for their young students.”

—Teachers College Record

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780807746387
Publisher:	Teachers College Press
Publication date:	11/25/2005
Series:	Early Childhood Education Series
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	144
Product dimensions:	6.12(w) x 9.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

Diane E. Levin is Professor at Wheelock College in Boston, Massachusetts, and Nancy Carlsson-Paige is a professor at Lesley University in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Table of Contents

	Preface to the Second Edition	vii
	An Unanticipated Journey	vii
	The Journey Continues	viii
	Acknowledgments	xi
Part I	Setting the Stage
1	War Play Under Fire: Concerns About War Play Today	3
	Tensions in Early Childhood Settings	5
	Tensions at Home	7
	Tensions Spill Out Beyond the Classroom and Home	9
	Changes in Play	12
2	Childhood Under Fire...And How This Contributes to the War Play Dilemma	15
	Marketing Violence to Children	15
	When the World Is a Dangerous Place	19
	Violence and War Play Through Children's Eyes	19
	The Challenge Facing Adults	21
Part II	Understanding the War Play Dilemma
3	The Great Divide: Examining the Two Sides of the War Play Debate	25
	The Developmental View: War Play Meets Children's Needs	25
	The Sociopolitical View: War Play Teaches Harmful Lessons	31
	Reframing the War Play Dilemma: Two Lenses Are Better Than One	37
	Conclusion: War Play Today and the Two Views	39
4	Taking a Close Look at War Play Today	40
	Jackson Tames the Dinosaurs	40
	Pow, Pow, Power Rangers	42
	News Violence Makes the Walls Come Tumblin' Down	44
	Conclusion	45
Part III	Strategies for Resolving the War Play Dilemma
5	To Ban or Not to Ban? Is That the (Right) Question? Deciding on an Approach to War Play	49
Option 1	Ban War Play	50
Option 2	Take a Laissez-Faire Approach to War Play	51
Option 3	Allow War Play, with Specified Limits	52
Option 4	Actively Facilitate War Play	53
Option 5	Limit War Play, But Provide Alternative Ways to Work on the Issues	55
	Parents and Teachers: Working Together (and Apart)	57
6	Guidelines for Resolving the War Play Dilemma	60
Guideline 1	Limit Children's Exposure to Violence	60
Guideline 2	Help Children Engage in Creative and Meaningful Dramatic Play	63
Guideline 3	Learn as Much as You Can	65
Guideline 4	In Children's War Play, Address the Issues	66
Guideline 5	Work to Counteract the Lessons About Violence and Stereotyping	69
Guideline 6	Make Keeping the Play Safe Your Highest Priority	72
Guideline 7	Limit the Use of Highly Structured Violent Toys	73
Guideline 8	Work to Counteract Highly Stereotyped and Limiting Gender Roles	76
Guideline 9	Create an Ongoing Dialogue Between Educators and Parents	79
	Conclusion	81
7	Resolving the War Play Dilemma: Examples of Adults and Children Working It Out Together	82
	More than Meets the Eye: One Family's Effort to Solve a War Play Dilemma	82
	Using a Class Meeting to Tame the Power Rangers: Working with Children to Solve the War Play Dilemma	87
	Conclusion: Can We Resolve the War Play Dilemma? Creating a Better World for Children and Their Play	93
Appendix A	Questions and Answers on Dealing with War Play	97
Appendix B	Two Sample Curriculum Webs	99
Appendix C	Resources for Working on the War Play Dilemma	103
	Notes	113
	Index	117
	About the Authors	123

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"No two authors in the country better understand the developmental needs of young children…This is the only comprehensive discussion I know that offers a clear understanding of why children engage in war play and what to do about it. Thank goodness for this book!"
— Barbara F. Meltz, Parenting columnist of the Boston Globe and author of Put Yourself in Their Shoes, Understanding How Your Children See the World.