Play Notes are the top feature of our monthly Play Times newsletters, each Play Note explains some aspect of play that research has discovered. This month’s Play Note, based on years of qualitative research by Dr. Brown, will help you identify the activities that feed your soul so you can make a priority of including them in your life. Play, like a fingerprint, is unique to each of us. Two people can play catch and for one it feels great, for the other it feels stressful. The activities and situations that engage us, that feel internally, personally satisfying are elements of our Play Nature.

This month’s Play Note explains the impact play has on human stress. We can’t eliminate difficult situations from our lives, but, by playing, we can build resilience to minimize the stress we feel from those situations. This issue also covers a new initiative to inform pediatricians and child therapists about a play-based alternative to talk therapy for kids with mental health issues. And, current news from the world of play.

The inaugural issue of Play Times, the newsletter of the National Institute for Play (NIFP), contains a PLAY NOTE on adult playfulness –a summary of research studies assessing the trait of playfulness. This issue also profiles Dr. Stuart Brown, founder of NIFP as well as current news in the world of Play Science.