The connection between joy and learning has been studied with increased interest (Curgdorf & Panksepp, 2006; Soderqvist et al., 2011; Solis et al., 2017). Joy in humans (there have also been animal studies) is regulated by the subcortical limbic networks (see yellow areas in the figure below). These limbic networks are associated with our emotions — fun fact: this is true in animal studies as well. Likewise, the areas of the brain responsible for higher order thinking (Blooms’ analyzing, synthesizing, creating) respond to the experiences of emotion — they are connected, so to speak. In the late 1990s and into the early 2000s, emotions were thought to be secondary to thinking. Emotions were sub-par. Consider the No Child Left Behind legislation and the rise of Microsoft Powerpoint. Drill and test became the rule for teaching. Standardization was king (sadly, it still is in many schools. Thank you, capitalism and the test company market.) But, the dawn of realization has hit and neuroscientific research has revealed that cognition and emotion are interconnected (Immordino-Yang & Damasio, 2007; Solis et al., 2017). To consider cognition and emotion as separate entities is as inaccurate a view as it is misleading.

We can make student learning paths playful by harnessing the power of curiosity, voice, and choice through personalized learning playlists. A personalized learning playlist provides a list of resources (videos, readings, experiences) and lets students choose which ones to explore based on their learning preferences. They move through the content at their own pace, similar to how they’d use a music playlist. 

Principles of Universal Design are blended with technology and flexible learning options to meet the needs of all learners while allowing teachers time and space to provide targeted feedback to individual students.

Play is inherently political. If I say “we need to let children play freely” then I’m also saying “parents need to be making enough money at their jobs to be able to come home and hang out with their kids for unstructured hours in the evening so the kids aren’t being shuffled from care service to care service.” I’m also saying, “teachers need to be paid enough and trusted enough to be capable of breathing without over-standardizing everything the children do.”