The term “brainwashing” carries connotations of propaganda at best, disappearance into ideological cults at worst. If we think of it as manipulation to change attitudes, then we’re in the mainstream of contemporary society.

Our children are brainwashed every day. They are bombarded with messages from advertisements, parents, teachers, relatives, caregivers, street-corner preachers, movies and TV, and peers. Some children perceive these messages as critical–disapproving of them. In any case, they “brainwash” a child’s self-concept by the time he is seven years old.

Two words, imprinted early, can cause years of trouble. They are “nasty” and “shame”. “Sticks and stones can break my bones, but words can never hurt me,” is a lie. Words can hurt.

Words can help, too.

Why not change the wash? Deliberately provide beneficial alternatives based on solid research? Self-esteem programs that failed lacked current knowledge.

The last decade has given us an explosion of information about the human brain. In his book, “Unleashing Your Brilliance”, Dr. Brian E. Walsh describes research that pinpoints various functions of the brain. He writes, “The human brain has three separate, yet dynamically interconnected, parts known as the Triune Brain; it incorporates the Reptilian Brain, the Limbic Brain, and the Neocortex. Through understanding their individual functions and symbiotic interactions, we can better understand accelerated learning.”

And, we can experience enjoyable, exciting learning! Read this marvelous book and you will see why I call for student brainwashing.

Imagine a school district where, from third grade through high school, each student desk is equipped with earphones and a storage box. Beginning in third grade, teachers explain how brainwaves function.

Brainwaves are electrical vibrations that flow and can be measured by the number of pulsations per second.

Beta level is 14 to 20 pulsations per second–best for action, fully conscious thinking

Alpha level is 7 to 14 — best for creative thinking and daydreaming (We go in and out of Alpha every 90 minutes naturally)

Theta level is 4 to 7 — sleep

Delta level ½ to 4 — deep sleep

The Beta level is the conscious level; Alpha is the upper level of the subconscious where intuition works.

The most brilliant and successful people in history deliberately slowed their minds to deep Alpha level daily.

Imagine a school district where all students understand the benefits of going to Alpha level fifteen minutes every day. In elementary school, it might be just before or after recess. At the same time every day, the students would put on their earphones, close their eyes, and listen to a warm recorded voice lead them in a state of calm relaxation. Alpha level.

Imagine the suggestions that voice could send to their subconscious minds beginning with, “You are aware at all times . . .

“You are now able to use your brilliant, creative mind.”

“You are growing stronger and brighter every day.”

“Picture a bubble wrap that nobody else can but you can pop. It’s invisible. It protects you. You can put it around you or hold it in front of you. It’s slippery on the outside. When anyone insults you, his words slip right off and back onto his own feet.”

Of course, parents would know and approve of recorded content.

The suggestions would change and grow more sophisticated by grade level, gender, demographics. High school students, trained through the grades, might create their own.

Imagine such a school district. The stress levels would be low, confidence and academic scores really high. No ADD. No Ritalin. No absentees. Much creativity.

I have benefited so much from audio discs that slow down my brainwaves and shift my self-perception upward, I want the whole world to participate.

Difficult to sell to parents, administrators, staff, legislatures? Definitely.

Worth it? What do you think? Let me know, please.

Copyright 2006 Cole’s Poetic License

Although we rarely recognize it, mythology continues to be strong part of our culture. Folklore has evolved significantly, as America's legendary heroes have been frontier trappers,
cowboys, policemen, soldiers, masked men, caped
superheroes and science fiction men-of-action
such as Buck Rodgers, Flash Gordon, Han Solo, and
of course … Captain Kirk of the Starship
Enterprise.

Replacing Indians (the Native American kind), "commies", and Nazis with Aliens as the bad-guys, and foreign lands as undiscovered planets, from September 8, 1966 – September 2, 1969, Bill Shatner kicked extraterrestrial ass for 79 episodes using World War II Judo and Jujutsu.

Amazingly, with all the far-out and high-tech
phasers, photons, and other assorted high tech
junk they could have used to save the day, Kirk
and his boys often reverted back to the
hand-to-hand combat moves they must have learned
from their great-great-great-great-great-grandfathers.
(That, or in the future the military actually
bought a clue and decided to start teaching what
actually works again!)

Now, whether you're a pointy-ear-wearin '
"Trekkie" or not, definitely check out an episode
or two next time your surfin 'by the Sci-Fi
channel.

You'll notice that the aliens that the crew
encountered were often physically dominating and
at times much larger and stronger, therefore
calling for a smarter and more effective approach
to combat than the wildly thrown "haymaker"
punch.

While actual terms like close-combat, martial
arts, Jujutsu or Judo were left out of the
script, the knowledgeable observer will
immediately recognize where the devastating edge
of hand strikes, brutal kicks, and ferocious
throws come from. In the famous episode "Arena", Captain Kirk has
to fight the reptilian commander of an enemy
vessel in one-on-one combat. Kirk attacks the
alien with a flurry of blows including all those
found in the WWII military combative systems we
teach.

In "Day of the Dove", Kirk and the rest of his
crew are pitted against Klingon warriors in
close-combat as both sides are restricted to only
their own respective warrior codes for guidance.

My own personal favorite, "Bread and Circuses",
Kirk, Spock, and McCoy use fists, swords, and
anything and everything else they can get their
hands on to battle technologically advanced
Romans.

Although there is no real Vulcan neck pinch, Gene
Roddenberry and the others who helped to create
Star Trek were products of a generation that knew
how to fight. In fact, Roddenberry himself had
law enforcement experience and piloted a B-17 in
the Pacific during WWII.

During this time, the United States military
practiced hand-to-hand combat training based off
of what was taught by WE Fairbairn and other
pioneers of REAL close-combat. After the war,
many military veterans became Hollywood stunt men
and when fight sequences were setup, did what
came natural to win a fight … Their training from
actual combat.

While many fight sequences of the 60's were still
choreographed in the classic style of the Western
barroom brawl, only Star Trek utilized these
authentic, proven combat methods in the majority
of its scenes.

As time marched on, and the world became
"sissified", martial arts shown in TV shows and
films changed dramatically in order to appear
more impressive to the audience. After all,
nobody likes to see the hero drop his opponent in
only a few "ugly" moves (Except for maybe Austin
Power's recent "Judo Chop" … Edge of hand anyone?).

No, they want high-flyin 'wirework, drunken
monkey foolishness, and ridiculous
split-the-crotch-of-my-pants high kicks.

But given a real, drag out, no-holds-barred,
fight for your life, I'd put my money on Kirk and
his "Crew" as opposed to Neo, Morpheus and the
rest of those Matrix computer geeks any day of
the week. (And Kirk would have beat the snot out
of that flashlight-wielding sissy Vader too)

Sitting still in confined places is one of the worst punishments that can be inflicted on the human species. Yet, this is what we require of students in school.”~ Edward T Hall.

There has been loads of research about the human brain and how it learns. Because of its complexity most theories use metaphors to explain how we learn in an over-simplified way.

If you are a coach, leader or a learning professional knowing this is extremely valuable if you want to create compelling, engaging and effective learning environments.

To make natural learning much more interesting, effective and faster it’s important to use the whole brain.

Your mind and body are inter-connected in a myriad of ways. Therefore, learning happens at a mind, body, emotional and a cellular level… It’s not just confined to your head!

However, education has traditionally taught us to separate the mind and body. Most learning is undertaken by the “head” rational processes ignoring the senses and our feelings. As we grow, the dis-connection between the mind and body becomes wider. Feelings are pushed down or ignored as these are seen as ‘soft’ and ‘weak.’ We are taught to sit down, stay still and learn!

Not very natural at all!

Many learning environments are created around the head and NOT the whole, even though research has proved that thinking and bodily movement are closely connected in the brain, both enhance learning.

This is known as behaviorism and stimulus and response (carrot and stick) has had a huge impact on learning, especially in the corporate world. It prescribes learning into Personal Development Plans (Personal Fixing Plans as I call them) that doesn’t lead to real sustainable growth.

My favourite brain theory is the Triune Brain proposed by American physician and neuroscientist Paul D. MacLean, because it uses the metaphor of three brains-in-one. Each are inter-connected and inter-linked. All three have specialist functions that relate and interact with each other.

Here’s a quick description of the three brains:

Reptilian or Lizard Brain: Our primitive brain was the first to evolve. It’s mostly responsible for survival and involuntary responses such as your heartbeat and breathing – instinctive and repetitive behavior. Our lizard loves routine and rituals and it instinctively becomes an animal if it perceives a threat.

Limbic System: Or the Mid-brain. This is our social and emotive brain. Responsible for feelings through our senses and is responsible for long-term memory.

Neocortex: Is 75 – 80 percent of your total brain mass. Its function is essential for problem solving, creativity, planning, language, thought, and movement (it’s 500th of a second slower to respond than your lizard brain!)

What does it have to do with learning?

Each specialist area subtly interacts and inter-relates in important and complex ways.

Traditionally, most of us are conditioned to learn using our Lizard Brain through rote learning and repetition, learning was done to you. You were a passive participant driven by hierarchy (teacher or Human Resources!). The key motivator was fear of failure with little concern for your thinking or feelings. Feelings were probably seen as a negative weakness that got in the way. It’s easy to create order takers and a command and control culture.

Don’t think, just do!

Individuals lose their ability to make decisions and problem solve because of this hierarchical approach to learning.

So how can these three brains help us to learn?

The Lizard Brain is still important for us in the learning process and we certainly don’t want it to stop because routine and precedent setting is good and positive (we also need to keep breathing right?).

This is just one part of the learning brain.

The Limbic System has a profound effect on the quality and quantity of your learning through connection with your emotions. Self-awareness and self-management can be profound. It also provides us with a checkpoint for common sense, common sense is not always common practice!

Negative feelings slow learning or even stop it altogether as we retreat to our Lizard Brain for protection to defend ourselves from a perceived threat.

Creating an environment for negative feelings as you train, coach or lead individuals will make them become defensive and compliant, especially if you’re getting them to compare and compete with each other. This is not an effective way for people to learn. You’re triggering their inner lizard. Learning will slow or stop altogether because they down-level into stress and survival.

Creating an environment where positive feelings are experienced helps your learner to relax, open up and Uplevel into their third brain: Neocortex function where thought, problem solving, planning, creativity, and pure learning takes place.

All learning experiences should exercise the Neocortex. This is known as the learning brain! Here where individuals get to think for themselves, recognize any feelings associated with their thinking, create conscious action, and get positive results.

You help others to become leaders of their own learning by holding space for their creativity and imagination, allowing them to create meaning and value by navigating the information instead of writing it down and storing it away for later (later NEVER happens!).

Learning is much more than sitting still and writing notes.

Our brains continue to grow and create new neural pathways into old age. So learning is life!

So here we are in the twenty-first century. Sounds like a long time, doesn’t it? So much has happened. Certainly times and experiences have waxed and waned. So many families, children, laughter, terrified screams, unutterable joy, unimaginable savagery.

And we now know of at least sixty centuries of people building towns of cities, trading and competing for resources, going to war. Our ancestors, distant almost beyond imaging, were using fire around a million years ago. First the reptilian brain, then mammalian brain, were up and running. Then they learned how to cook meat, which gave them enough protein and fat for their brains to expand. A million years ago, they still had no prefrontal cortex, no language as we know it today. Our ancient ancestors explored their world, made simple tools like stone axes, and continued with no discernible evolution for hundreds of thousands of years.

Eventually, all the branches of human evolution died out, leaving us. Our curiosity, our cunning, our capacity for guile and treachery is legendary. It’s easy to see that our species, like those before us, has come to the end of how it’s been. Either we continue to adapt, radically adapt, or our species will go the way of our ancestor species. Flying into a psychotic rage and slaughtering others will no longer save us. Actually, there is some evidence to support the notion that our species continues to evolve, including the evolution of consciousness itself.

You see, in many ways our ancestors from 100,000 years ago were not that different from us. If we were to dress and groom them, they could walk down a crowded city street with barely a glance. For tens of thousands of years, most of our evolution for has been inside, in the development of our brains. There are many of us now who long for peace, who envision a world where everyone feels safe, loved, and celebrated. But those of us who choose peace have been at the mercy of those who choose war. One of the hallmarks of those who choose war is that they have no mercy. Blood lust is as real as sexual lust.

Studies show that high levels of testosterone do make it more likely that those men suffering from it will father more children, and seem to have some additional benefits. Yet we are now hearing that these high levels of testosterone are toxic to the individual as well as to the society in which they live. As a society, I believe we most find ways to harness and channel this energy in honoring, respectful ways that do NOT include war. Many of us, and more all the time, do not suffer from a surfeit of testosterone. We’re not hyper-competitive, we don’t need to be the best, the richest, the flashiest or the loudest. Yet we have a right to be, a right to live in peace and thrive.

There is an old adage that might makes right. Yet, when we look at our human history over the 8,000 years or so we’ve been keeping track, empires always fall. The center (of power) never holds. And now, with our ability to annihilate each other, to fish the oceans bare, create global warming, and continue to dither as the ruthless prey on the defenseless (Darfur), our species, considered the most adaptable in our long lineage, must adapt and evolve again if we are to survive in a meaningful way. When will we, as a species, wake up and see excessive testosterone as a terminal disease?

Bestiary is one among the categories set by the tome of knowledge Warhammer Online. It is a main category that is further categorize into several sub-types. The Warhammer online tome of knowledge achievement bestiary guides sub-types are as follows:

Iceshard Blade
This involves Yhetees who have been known to create certain armors even from the ice that covers the mountains where they inhabit. The lore of this achievement is founded on the usage of their breath as well as of their fallen branch. They are the beasts who are white coated who create simple clubs over their claws. Within their cave you could find Ice Shard who exuded a certain aura releasing a freezing cold with its jagged edges incomparable even to the sternest armor.

Master Slaying
In this subtype, many are said to renown themselves as the great warrior, and more to even they could heft a sword, yet only a few of them could shape their art and skill along with the dedication and aspiration in order to become a true and genuine masters of their craft. This subtype guides calls on the potentials and weak points of a certain character as well as with their foes. And on the last point of the game, the truest warriors truly know these very much along with the sharpness of their own blades.

Surviving
The lore bestiary achievement of which is primarily described to be the inner strength for a warrior to survive any given battles, quests, and games within the exciting levels along with Age of Reckoning. Living a great warrior is encompassing any great beasts and monster that is met along in the world of combat.

The Littlest Beastmaster
This is a subtype wherein the dark Elves noble journey into the battle who atop any vicious reptiles, who are known as the Cold Ones who are greatly feared. Their sight in any battle straddles the reptilian steed within them and they never miss to instill slash of fear into their enemies. They are mostly trained by Beastmasters of Karond. The Cold Ones who re newly hatched must not be put into battle but rather they must face their growth and progression of training before they could carry with them the rider that will make them the combo in facing into the battle. This Warhammer online tome of knowledge achievement bestiary guide subtype is not considered truly safe after years of experience in killing and mastery in brutality during battle.

India is a hub for many adventurous activities. There are many opportunities within India for sports lovers and for those who are in love with wildlife and safaris.

India is known for its flora and fauna. It’s flora population consists of around 7.6% of all mammalian, 12.6% of all avian, 6.2% of all reptilian, 4.4% of all amphibian, 11.7% of all fish, and 6.0% of all flowering plant species. It has 1250 species of birds and 410 species of mammals. The wildlife of India is its asset and should never be missed by true nature lovers.

Wildlife India Tour Packages are a must for the people who do not want to miss any chance to view the gems of nature. India is one such land, which has dense forests, free flowing rivers, deltas, basins, deserts and snow capped mountains. Thus wildlife forms a major part of any India Tour Packages.

Since ages India has been trying to conserve its rare species and animals. Many initiatives have been undertaken to preserve tigers in India, which are falling short day by day. Many areas serving animals since years have been converted into wildlife sanctuaries. For the utmost delight of wildlife lovers, India has 80 National Parks and 441 wildlife sanctuaries and national parks.

The major wildlife sanctuaries in India are Ranthambore wildlife sanctuary, Corbett National Park, Kaziranga National Park, Gir National Park and Sunderbans National Park.

Major wildlife sanctuaries are Bharatpur Wildlife Sanctuary and Sarisika wildlife Sanctuary and they from a very important part of India Tour Packages.

You can enjoy the thrilling ride inside these forests through a forest Safari. The safari can be organized in a jeep, on elephants, on camels, on horses, depending upon the place you are visiting.

The animals you can view while on safari can be innumerous, and depending on your luck you can also see a Royal Bengal Tiger. Royal Bengal Tiger is the most sought after animal amongst the travelers in India. It is the largest living animal amongst the cat family and is know for its royal and graceful style.

The other animals found in India are the Black Buck, Snow leopards, Indian Elephants, Greta India Rhinoceros and King Cobra.

Before arranging any Wildlife India Tour Packages, one should make proper arrangements for Safaris in the dense jungles of India. There are many things of utter importance which should be packed along with your normal clothes. They are binoculars, torch, cotton socks, hat and sun glasses. If you are visiting India during summers, then remember that the climate during summers proves to be harsh. To protect yourself from the scorching heat, do not forget packing sunscreen, painkillers and mosquito repellents.

Thus Wildlife India Tour Packages can be filled with fun and surprises. There are a huge variety of animals to see in India. All the wildlife sanctuaries and National Parks have provisions for boarding and lodging. You can stay in proper hotel rooms, tents and cottages.

Thus to enjoy a proper India tour package, get your tour booked in advance through a well known tour operator. Many tour operators are available online, which can even customize your tour.

What is Reference Point Therapy?

Reference Point Therapy is a relatively new technique for personal healing, growth and development. It is the creation of Simon & Evette Rose and is a method for clearing trauma, behavioral patterns, negative beliefs and emotional blocks. Reference Point Therapy is based on many key principles including:

• everything can be sourced from within. There is no channeling, praying, downloading, tapping, touching, crystals, needles, herbs etc. required to practice the technique
• that we inherit much of our trauma or emotional baggage from our ancestors (science of epigenetics)
• that it is the r-complex, or reptilian brain that governs behavior (triune brain model) thereby making instant change possible

By acknowledging the above, the technique allows the individual or practitioner to root out the anchors holding negative behavior, emotions and beliefs in place, from their origin (or earliest reference point) and dissolve the negative associations made at the time the trauma occurred. When the trauma is ‘resolved’ i.e. there is only a prevailing sense of inner peace and quietness about the trauma incident, instant change can take place, which can be physical, mental, emotional or even spiritual in nature.

Reference Point Therapy helps bridge the gap between science and spirituality. Whilst the technique is based on solid scientific principles, its effectiveness is demonstrated by the spiritual law of attraction.

By releasing trauma, we can think of it as releasing the tone or vibration of the trauma being carried. If this tone or vibration is no longer ‘within’ an individual, by law of attraction, the individual will no longer attract the negative experiences that this vibration was bringing into his or her experience.

For example, if a man was bullied as a child, he may have been carrying within him victim-like energy. By law of attraction, this energy will attract into his life, further similar experiences. Perhaps he is the one picked on by his friends or co-workers. Perhaps he is being abused by a partner or a boss or even he is the one who is always taken advantage of in his day-to-day dealings. Until the trauma has been released, he will continue to attract these negative experiences into his life.

And in this example, what if this victim energy was actually passed down via his ancestors who they themselves had endured a holocaust, slavery or some other form of persecution?

Reference Point Therapy acknowledges this link and how vital it is in order to heal or transform a pattern of negative experiences or behavior. Combined with the ability to tap into the r-complex, transforming the victim-like vibration can instantly change the way this person thinks and behaves. Imagine what life could be like for this person after this transformation?

Reference Point Therapy can be applied to almost any aspect of a persons life to help them achieve balance, freedom, abundance, peace and security.

A lot has been written about being in the state of Fear. There are countless techniques and methods of psychology devoted to relieving anxiety, panic, and other disorders of the mind. There is a plethora of drugs that Big Pharma would love to get the entire planet on, that are supposed to relieve that state of fear. The truth is: Fear is something that is not real. Oh it feels real, alright, but it really is something that we concoct within our reptilian brain and it runs amok into our higher centers of the mind. We allow the fear to exist.

Did you know that science has delivered the ability to actually cause you to fear, even when there is nothing there to be afraid of? The military has the brain pattern altering weapons (which were tested on the public before being employed in battle). If this sounds preposterous, think about this for a minute: have you ever felt a huge wave of fear or anxiety and not known where it came from? Were you actually in a good mood until that wave of fear hit? So where did it come from?

There are two places such irrational fears come from. One place is the microwave transmission of such things, as used by the military. Another is the entangled mind of humanity. As in the ‘hundredth monkey’ example, when enough people feel fear, it multiplies. It jumps from one person, to all of those who are in quantum entanglement with that person…and then all the others in entanglement with that batch of people…and continues on.

In any case, the important thing to do when one feels that wave of irrational fear hit, is to decide if it belongs to you or not. If you really do have something to be afraid of in the moment, such as a tiger chasing you, then it’s your fear. If you were in a good mood, or completely occupied with what you are doing, and then felt a wave of fear, it’s not yours. Sometimes the fear is connected with an event about to happen, as in the 9/11 attack, when many people didn’t go in to work that day. That is an example of quantum entanglement-the plan to kill thousands of people was picked up, through that entanglement, on a subconscious level.

Look at animal behavior for a clue to planetary entanglement. The only animals that died during the earthquakes and tsunamis were the ones who were locked up and couldn’t run to safe ground. Animals start acting weird anywhere from just before, to several days before Nature starts making changes. Some humans can tell too, by migraine headaches, strange hums in the ears, or vague uneasiness with a desire to get away.

For the evil, viral kind of Fear that is being fed to humanity, there is an easy way to combat that. Just refuse to give in to it and find the Still Point within. Those who meditate can do this easily, for others, it might take learning meditation. When you center yourself within, ask yourself a simple question: “Why am I completely free of manipulation towards Fear?” You will actually feel a change within yourself while you are asking; changes in your life follow. It really is that easy, so avoid trying to complicate it. By asking that one simple question, especially if asked just before falling asleep or just when waking up-while still in that ‘twilight’ area-you engage your subconscious mind in assisting with positive change.

By couching the question as listed, the real fears-those necessary ones to keep you safe when confronted with real danger-will still be there when you need them. The difference is, the hypnotic manipulation via newspapers, television, radio, and mind-control projects will cease to have an effect on you. Humanity was not meant to grovel in Fear, begging for crumbs of life (which is what the greedy, evil, people intend for The Sheeple). Genuine Human Beings are meant to progress beyond the stars, and far beyond the physical body. We are destined for the greatness of which is promised in the holy books…isn’t it time we all acted like it?

Do you have reptile pets? If you happen to have leopard geckos for pets, it would be best to take note of the most common gecko illnesses. Leopard gecko problems are things that every gecko owner should always keep in mind, because it ensures the survival of your pet.

There are a set of gecko problems that pet owners have to be knowledgeable about. This includes respiratory tract infection, mouth infection, and calcium deficiency among others. To make sure that your pet gecko does not go through such ailments, you should read more magazines and books regarding the care for your gecko pet.

Experts on the subject say that these geckos can live up to 20 years or more if their habitat is suitable for them, and if they get all the nutrition they need on a daily basis. Taking care of a gecko is a painstaking activity but if you love your little pet, learning about its common illnesses will surely help.

Digestive tract obstruction is a common illness among geckos. What is this illness? This occurs when your reptilian pet ingests something; be it a substance, a material, or whatever it felt like eating-that it cannot really digest. The obstruction can be very fatal and may kill the animal. That is why you should always take time to monitor your pet, and see what he or she is ingesting.

Sometimes, these geckos have a tendency to eat the substrate to get calcium, making it impossible for them to actually get enough calcium and even cause an impaction.

These things should not happen if you know how to care for your little gecko pet. Always making sure that there is a plate of calcium supplements inside the tank will be of help because this way, you will be preventing a serious impaction, and you will also be providing your pet with enough calcium. In turn, your pet will be a very happy gecko.

Other illnesses that most geckos encounter are mouth infection and respiratory infection. Mouth infection is caused by a dirty cage. Oral antibiotics will help in this case, but you would also need to sterilize or clean the cage thoroughly to make sure that your pet's mouth infection will not exacerbate.

Respiratory tract infection is your gecko getting the flu. This means that the environment it lives in is too cold for him. Adjusting the temperature will usually treat the said illness but if all fails, calling the vet is advised.

INTRODUCTION

Play is an under-rated, under-promoted element of exuberance overlooked in wellness promotion. Let’s encourage children to play more, especially unsupervised, and do a lot more of it ourselves.

Americans young and old are play-impaired. The evidence regarding the benefts of play is overwhelming; the adverse consequences of doing too little of it are well understood.

Not everyone has overlooked the value of play. G. K. Chesterton said,

The true object of all human life is play. Frank Caplan believed play to be man’s most useful preoccupation. If necessity is the mother of invention, play surely is the father.

Of course, some of us are getting way more play than our fair share — if we got any more, we might be prosecuted, or at least reprimanded for fooling around too much. The fortunate minority of the playful surely include AWR subscribers, happy children, all who are demonstrably stress-free and folks who, day after day, experience far more than their minimal daily requirements of DBRU equivalents.

(You can read about DBRU equivalents by using the search function at this site to reach a previous essay on this topic.)

However, tens of millions, maybe hundreds of millions young and old, are totally unaware how crucial play is to their wellbeing and thus rarely get their minimum daily requirements of this vital mental nutrient.

These people need reasons and excuses to play, coaching in how, when, where and why to play. They need play therapy. It’s a national emergency, as crucial to the American economy, the global environment and world peace as is removing from office, as soon as possible, the execrable reptilian lowlife bloviator-in-chief whose grotesque presidency might hasten a Third Reich-like Gilead theocracy, if not the Rapture itself.

Apologies to reptiles everywhere if this association caused offense.

EARLY EDUCATION IN FINLAND AND AMERICA

Contrast the educational approaches in Finland and America with respect to this activity and the power of play comes into perspective. The superior results from the Finnish system, focused on play in the early years, contrasts with the stress-inducing American path focused upon test scores. The test score model is a factor in poorer health, among other problems, in the U.S.

Play is a major feature of Finnish education. A recent Wall Street Journal article captured the dramatic differences in a feature article about two professors who took sabbaticals in each other’s country. (See Pasi Sahlberg and William Doyle, To Really Learn, Our Children Need the Power of Play, Wall Street Journal, August 8, 2019, p. C3.)

Pasi Sahlberg came to America from Finland five years ago. Upon arrival, he set out to place his three-year old son in an American preschool in the Boston area. In the enrollment interview, he was asked to describe his son’s preschool readiness, more specifically his vocabulary and numeracy skills. The dad explained that, as far as he could tell, his 3-year old didn’t have much going for him in either area.

The Finnish dad also discovered that tuition at a Boston preschool would be $25,000 — annually.

In America, fragmented and dysfunctional educational systems are structured around standardized testing, competition, stress and, in non-public schools, religion and God. In Finland, renowned for its educational system, the learning model is built around the power of play, with outcomes focused on wellbeing, happiness and joy. Education is also nearly free, from preschool through university. While held in low esteem in varied international ratings, U.S. school costs, as demonstrated in the Boston preschool case, are sky high.

Over a decade ago, in order to mitigate America’s sorrowful position in international education rankings, a consensus developed around the idea of downgrading or eliminating the arts, physical activity and play. Compounding existing problems of hurried lifestyles and rapid changes in family structure, U.S. parents supported more standardized testing — and test preparations. Alas, the general consensus is that this shift has not boosted scores or the quality of education for children. Despite tens of billions in expenditures, little to no gains in test scores have been recorded, but the spike in childhood mental health disorders has been dramatic.

So, what’s going on in Finland? How successful has their focus on play to promote happiness, physical fitness, joy and wellbeing proven to be? The answer is strikingly successful. The Finnish school system is number one in the world! Finland’s system is ranked #1 for childhood education by three different global accrediting bodies.

A recent article in the Smithsonian Magazine offers details on results, including these highlights:

Ninety-three percent of Finns graduate from academic or vocational high schools, 17.5 percentage points higher than the United States and 66 percent go on to higher education, the highest rate in the European Union. Yet Finland spends about 30 percent less per student than the United States.

Still, there is a distinct absence of chest-thumping among the famously

reticent Finns. They are eager to celebrate their recent world hockey

championship, but PISA scores, not so much. We prepare children to learn

how to learn, not how to take a test, said Pasi Sahlberg, a former math and

physics teacher who is now in Finland’s Ministry of Education and

Culture. We are not much interested in PISA. It’s not what we are about.

Let’s look more closely at the nature of play.

ILLUSTRATIVE ELEMENTS IN THE FINNISH CHILD’S WORLD OF PLAY

• Teachers embrace the principle of letting children be children; they understand that the work of children is play; parents support plentiful outdoor play.
• Parents give children space (opportunities) to learn how to assess and take risks, to value personal responsibly at the earliest possible age.
• Schools schedule 15-minute outdoor recess periods for each hour of every day, rain or shine. Self-directed intellectual and physical activity by children with minimal direct interference by adults is considered particularly effective for children in poverty, who are otherwise deprived of play at home and school.
• Educators want schools to be a child’s favorite place. Teachers are carefully selected, highly trained and well respected as elite professionals.

Test taking and assessments function on a different model from ours; in lieu of annual, high-stakes standardized tests, Finnish children are assessed daily. Student wellbeing, happiness and general exuberance are preferred indicators of social growth and emotional development.

The 67,000 member American Academy of Pediatrics is one of many U.S. champions of the Swedish educational system. In 2018, the Academy issued a clinical report urging adoption of the Finish system. It was entitled, The Power of Play.

Play enables a child to become more resilient, develop new competencies and gain confidence. When not being directed by adults, children at play learn to work in groups, share, negotiate and resolve conflicts. Play is essentially practice in decision-making, pacing and finding areas of personal interest and passion.

In the U.S., homework is to play what religion is to critical thinking — an impediment to quality of life and mental health. Homework guidelines call for one hour for middle school, two hours for high school. That amounts to 180 hours over a typical middle school year — time when children could be playing and thereby deriving the kind of gains noted in Finland.

WHAT ABOUT ADULTS?

Physicist Richard Feynman said, Play is hard to maintain as you get older. You get less playful. You shouldn’t, of course.

Indeed, you should not. Adults need play as much if not more than children, given that they are under more demands to work, serve, please and conform. Play is not expected to be a priority – who has not been told to stop playing around — get serious?

Play is therapeutic at all ages – as for children, it facilitates learning, enhances productivity and increases job satisfaction. The family that plays together is probably more likely to stay together – and enjoy doing so. Those who are play-impaired are likely to be cranky, rigid and feel stuck in a rut and/or victimized by life. Play should be part of everyday life, not something to do on weekends and holidays.

Play can be entertaining, spontaneous, energetic. Those who play are considered most likely to have the three qualities that most appeal to the opposite sex, according to a Penn State University study. These qualities are sense of humor, fun-loving and non-aggressiveness.

Adult play forms are endless; all forms count and contribute but those that entail involvement in the action are best. Going to a game and sitting might be a form of passive play, but it pales in comparison with playing a game.

The British zoologist Desmond Morris considers painting, sculpture, drawing, music, singing, dancing, gymnastics, games, sports, writing, and speech forms of adult play. With these and other expressions, he suggests we can carry on to our heart’s content, all through our long lives, complex and specialized forms of exploration and experiment.

Whether complex and specialized, or simple and commonplace, make a special effort to find all manner of ways to add play to your REAL wellness lifestyle.