Learning or Playing?

I'm trying not to get my feathers ruffled this week.  But I've had two different people tell me something to the effect that they couldn't do something with technology or didn't have time to use this or that with technology because they didn't have time to waste on playing like I do (because they thought there was no academic value in it).  Yes, technology is my passion, but no matter what your passion is or isn't, shouldn't learning and playing be synonymous?  I mean really, how many of us every really learned to do something under stressful, laborious conditions or without much interest for the subject or with simply a piece of paper and pencil?  When I see kids (and teachers) experience some new piece of technology, site, program, etc, there are smiles, enthusiasm, a focus on that task like not seen in a paper and pencil task.  So, if all this is true, then my goodness, why would we not want to use every available piece of technology or find some way to incorporate it or use it to motivate our kiddos as a reward for something?  I don't mean to rant, I just simply don't understand.  But maybe I do a little, see I was slightly there a few years ago.  "No, I don't want to learn that new program because I barely have time for what is required after all."  But when I discovered all that it can do to save me time, like grading those assignments for me, or motivating my reluctant and shy kiddos to speak into an iPad and tell their story instead of being mute in class, or watching my most ADHD kiddo stay focused for thirty plus minutes, then why not.  

To me, PLAYING IS LEARNING!

A poster I found for our computer lab says, "Learning is not a spectator sport, so let's play!"  It's in this "playing" that we make mistakes, reflect on them, fix it, move on, learn to persevere, learn how to have stamina, learn how to have grit.  It's in the "playing" that I, as a teacher, now have time to see my students in a small group setting so they can't hide in a large group and fake their way through some content.  It's in the "playing" that I learn how to keep my students motivated, attentive, engaged, yet active in their own learning.  It's in the "playing" that I now have time for more important tasks like using all that data to reteach/review instead of wasting it on actually grading something (and I'm not just talking about assessments).  It's in the "playing" that I can be a better communicator to my families and connect my students to the real world.  It's in the "playing" that new discoveries are made on all sorts of topics.  Playing and learning just go together and we should all make time to play every now and again.  Playing makes us better at what we do and better for our students (who by the way are better at technology than any adult I know, myself included).  I hope you make time to play and learn!