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Purpose • Who We Are • What We Do • History of Organization • Vision & Mission • Core Beliefs • Board of Directors • Advisory Council • Annual Report
History The starting point: kids need wholesome,
creative, imaginative play
The Playing for Keeps concept grew out of a conversation that occurred
in late 1998 between a scholar who studies play and a leading toy
manufacturer. What if, they mused, there were a way to make play
more wholesome, creative, and imaginative for children, and more
targeted to their developmental needs? Could promoting an environment
of constructive play in our schools be part of the solution to school-based
violence? Shouldn't all children have access to play that fits their
developmental level, regardless of their socioeconomic circumstances
or abilities? Shouldn't parents be encouraged to remember that kids
need unstructured time in their day for imaginative free play?
The birth of a national not-for-profit
organization
These and other concerns led to the notion of creating a national
not-for-profit organization dedicated to promoting and protecting
the role of play in our culture. Its founders, Ed Klugman, Professor Emeritus at Wheelock College and John Lee, Founder and President of Learning Curve International,
conceived of Playing for Keeps as a way to bring together various
constituencies that have knowledge about, interest in, or the ability
to impact the quantity and quality of children's opportunities to
play-and consequently, to promote children's optimal development.
During the spring of 1999, the founders convened an Advisory Committee
of leading professionals from academia, children's advocacy organizations,
the toy industry, and the publishing industry to develop a direction
for the organization.
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