This is a bittersweet post. For the past decade, popatplay has been the Pedagogy of Play research team’s playground – a place for us to explore ideas, share stories, test theories, and connect with colleagues around the world who are similarly curious about playful teaching and learning. Posts have followed the trajectory of our questions, sometimes sharing what we’ve learned, other times putting out ideas as they emerged and evolved. The blog both shaped and was shaped by our research.

Next month, the Pedagogy of Play project will come to a close. While the blog will no longer be active, within the next few weeks all previously published posts will migrate over to the Pedagogy of Play page on the Project Zero website (it's not live now, but will be soon!). On the PoP website you can also find the fruits of our playful labor: teacher resources, teacher educator resources, and our book, which is now available as a free PDF in English, Spanish, and Chinese; in print in English and Chinese; and as free audio files.

The conclusion of the research doesn’t mean we’ve asked and answered all questions! In fact, core members of the team will continue to explore and wonder about playful learning in various contexts! If you want to stay in touch, you can find some of these folks here:

-      Jen: jen_ryan@harvard.edu

-      Mara: mara_krechevsky@harvard.edu

-      Ben: benmar89@mit.edu 

-      Megina: mbaker3@bostonpublicschools.org

-      Katie: katie.eleanor.ertel@gmail.com

And so, we sign off with many thanks to our guest authors, avid followers, and occasional readers. We have learned so much from you and feel grateful (and hopeful!) to have such committed practitioners advocating for the inclusion of playful teaching and learning in a variety of settings. To our friends and colleagues at the International School of Billund who have been our thought partners and participatory research collaborators since the beginning; to educators from our research sites in South Africa, Colombia, and the US; to the thousands of educators who have contributed to our thinking over the years; and, finally, to the LEGO Foundation for funding this incredibly joyful and meaningful work…thanks for the laughs, challenges, and insights. We hope our paths continue to cross!

‍