Description
This is a collection of 237 tried and tested games to play with children and groups of all ages.
A companion to the Waldorf Games Handbook for the Early Years (2020), Games Children Play II is a thoroughly updated second edition of the classic, Games Children Play (1996) with new games added, by popular demand.
Kim John Payne and Cory Waletzko’s Waldorf Steiner and Spatial Dynamics approach is uniquely focused on how games develop children’s spatial awareness, social skills, confidence and movement in age-appropriate ways.
Each game is clearly and simply described, with diagrams and drawings for how to play. There are games for helping graceful movement, co-operation, fairness and equality for the 7-10’s. Games for courage, accuracy, teamwork and gentle preparation for sports for 11- to 12-year-olds, along with games for renewing playground culture and holding a DIY Olympic Games.
How to develop spatial awareness is described through sport, gymnastics and outdoor games. There are sections on child development, introducing games sessions, children’s temperaments, the senses, tackling children’s problems with play or sport, how to introduce games sessions, teaching movement to children, and cultivating the lost art of real-life play with children challenged by the digital age.
Games include variations depending on the age and number of players. There are tips for the games leaders on meeting the varying social and emotional needs of the players within a group. A section sets the context for the ever-increasing need for ‘IRL’ (In Real Life) games for children growing up in a digital age. Some new games have an embedded subheading, ‘For children who may struggle to play this game,’ as well as practical/do-able tips on how we can engage this new generation of children.
‘We give readers the ‘Why?’ and not just the ‘What?’ of playing games and sport. So, it’s not just about playing the games and having fun, but of creating an atmosphere for learning/healing with children. The games are a vehicle for deepening players’ experience of well-being. Our understanding of the developmental needs of children and the very practical and do-able steps we can take to address these informs the book and game instructions.’ Cory Waletzko
Endorsements
‘What a delightful collection! The wide range of games are described so clearly that it’s easy to find something to play with a lucky child or group of children. And then you’ll want to play something else, just because it so much fun to play and sing.’ Rahima Baldwin Dancy, author, You are Your Child’s First Teacher
‘A valuable resource of enjoyable games for preparing children for life.’ Sally Goddard Blythe, author, The Well-Balanced Child
‘
Everything in this book works with children! An invaluable guide for every teacher, movement specialists and parents.’ Valerie Baadh Garrett, The Movement Academy Project.
‘An inspiring and useful gem.’ Jane Miller EdD, Department of Education, Antioch University, New England, USA
About the Authors
Kim John Payne has been quietly and passionately working to help tens of thousands of people give voice to the feeling that something is not okay about the new normal of overwhelm that so many people are now experiencing. He offers do-able ways to realise the hopes and values we all have for ourselves, and build deep connections with our children that gives families resiliency and simple joy. A consultant and trainer to over 230 US independent and public schools, Kim John Payne, M.ED, has been a school counsellor, adult educator, consultant, researcher, educator and a private family counsellor for thirty years. He regularly gives keynote addresses at international conferences, and runs workshops and trainings around the world. In each role, he has been helping children, adolescents and families explore issues such as social difficulties with siblings and classmates, attention and behavioural issues at home and school, emotional issues such as defiance, aggression, addiction and self-esteem and the vital role living a balanced simple life brings. He is Co-Founding Director of Whole Child Sports, an institute that educates parents and coaches about the value of a healthy approach to child and youth sports and play. He has also consulted for educational associations in South Africa, Hungary, Israel, Russia, Switzerland, Ireland, Canada, Australia, and the United Kingdom, Thailand and China. Kim has worked extensively with the North American and UK Waldorf educational movements. He has served as Director of the Collaborative Counselling programme at Antioch University New England. He is the Director of the Simplicity Project, a multi media social network that explores what really connects and disconnects us to ourselves and to the world. Together with his team they have trained over 1000 Simplicity Parenting Coaches around the world. Kim is the Founding Director of The Centre for Social Sustainability, an organisation that has trained thousands of teachers, parents and students in the Three Streams of Healthy School Culture that gives social, emotional and behavioural support to children who struggle in the school environment. He is the author of best sellers Simplicity Parenting, Soul of Discipline, Beyond Winning, Being at Your Best when Your Kids Are at Their Worst, and co-author of the new Emotionally Resilient Tweens and Teens. His books have been translated into 27 languages. He has appeared frequently on television including ABC, NBC, CBS, Fox; on radio with the BBC, Sirius/XM, CBC & NPR, and in print including being featured in Time Magazine, Chicago Tribune, Parenting, Mothering, Times Union and the LA Times. Kim strives to deepen understanding and give practical tools for life that arise out of the burning social issues of our time. He lives on a farm in Ashfield, Massachusetts, USA with his wife and two children.
Cory Waletzko has taught movement and games at the Upper Valley Waldorf School and in the wider Northeast region since 2005. She is a graduate of Spacial Dynamics® and Bothmer Gymnastics and has worked for the Center for Social Sustainability, bringing Social Inclusion to students and staff in both public and private schools. Cory is a certified Waldorf teacher and has a Master’s in Education from Sunbridge College and a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Carnegie Mellon University. Before becoming a teacher, she was a professional dancer, actor, and musician. She is a co-producer of FEARless, a ‘performers-potluck’ initiative through which artists explore how fear affects our lives. She currently teaches Games and Movement, and Music at Northeast Woodland Chartered Public School in New Hampshire. She is interested in bridging social and cultural divides and how music, movement, and the creative process can help us do it. Play on!
