Feel of goodness: A pattern that connects. About the role of Original Play® ("primary fun") in child-oriented education

Abstract

Children play with a world that is alive, kind, and sacred. In their original play children remind us that unity lies at the heart of life. It has been a principle of human wisdom traditions and more recently neuroscience that behind the apparent diversity of life lies a sense of unity and connection that is crucial for the development of human beings. The purpose of this article is to suggest that the Original Play® of children not only activates life’s inherent principle of kindness, but in doing so also demonstrates that the unity at the heart of life can be experienced and shared. Combined with the latest research in neuroscience and our wisdom traditions the role of Original Play® in child-centered education is to reinstate a sense of kindness as the optimum foundation for a truly child-centered education.

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