“If you want to be creative, stay in part a child, with the creativity and invention that characterizes children before they are deformed by adult society.”

— Jean Piaget

I am of the belief that learning should never be thrown at students, and rather experienced with them, and that is also true of engagement in joy and play. The line drawn between the experience of childhood and childlike play and adult seriousness when trying to level with young people can create an unnecessary divide and stark power dynamic. In the name of allowing children to have agency, I believe that student-led teacher-included engagement in play is crucial. This means engaging in what children find to be important, where it be playing on the playground with children, having dedicated time for unstructured play, and overt values of time to be silly. This may manifest itself in things as small as participating in academic activities with the children to going out on the playground and experiencing the joy and freedom of play alongside students.