The young prince gasped, his eyes snapping open at the sound of the familiar voice. “Sister, it’s you!” The princess, beautiful and brave, was high in the tree singing out to her friends, the birds.
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“Where have you been brother?” the princess asked, inviting her younger brother up into the tree. “We’ve been lost in these woods for hours and we’ve got to find help.”
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The prince reluctantly climbed up into the tree. “But don’t you know these trees are alive? They can hear us even now.”
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“Don’t worry brother. The birds speak for us,” the princess responded, continuing her whistling conversation with the creatures flying above.
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This is a recent example of the creative stories our kids play out all the time. They saw a large tree calling out to them from a distance and immediately they entered another world.
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One of the beautiful truths about unschooling is it requires enormous amounts of undirected playtime, where kids are free to play out make-believe stories that often mimic real life (talking trees and birds may not be real life, but surviving in the woods could be).
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In a single hour of free play, our kids are learning more than just social interaction. They might practice communication skills, problem solving, critical decision making, conflict resolution, creative story telling, dexterity, sensory skills, attention span, and much more.
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Having the freedom to develop these skills early, our kids will build a strong foundation of learning from which they will build the rest of their lives.
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What are some other important skills that are learned through play?
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