Thank you for this post! I love the advocacy for play here. I also just wanted to mention my thoughts on gender. Whenever we talk about this concept, it can be important to acknowledge the messages that we are sent as young children. In reading your article, I feel like there is a wonderful opportunity to expand further upon the connection between gender and rough housing. Girls are often allowed to hug and show physical affection in loving ways, while boys can be shamed for this behavior, leaving only rough housing as a socially acceptable form of physical touch. While rough housing for everyone certainly has its value, it might perpetuate unhealthy messages to state "it is more common among males" without examining the reasons behind gender segregation. I've found bell hooks to be an incredible resource for diving deeper into gender roles. Likewise, I always think back to this article whenever gender roles are referenced on an evolutionary level: https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2023/07/01/1184749528/men-are-hunters-women-are-gatherers-that-was-the-assumption-a-new-study-upends-i
Thank you for this post! I love the advocacy for play here. I also just wanted to mention my thoughts on gender. Whenever we talk about this concept, it can be important to acknowledge the messages that we are sent as young children. In reading your article, I feel like there is a wonderful opportunity to expand further upon the connection between gender and rough housing. Girls are often allowed to hug and show physical affection in loving ways, while boys can be shamed for this behavior, leaving only rough housing as a socially acceptable form of physical touch. While rough housing for everyone certainly has its value, it might perpetuate unhealthy messages to state "it is more common among males" without examining the reasons behind gender segregation. I've found bell hooks to be an incredible resource for diving deeper into gender roles. Likewise, I always think back to this article whenever gender roles are referenced on an evolutionary level: https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2023/07/01/1184749528/men-are-hunters-women-are-gatherers-that-was-the-assumption-a-new-study-upends-i