Let's play

One of my favorite things to do as a child was to play with my siblings on weekends and with my classmates in school on weekdays.

It was a time when patintero, habulan, piko, and Chinese garter were the craze. I don’t think anyone of us knew then that the day would come when handheld games would rule kids’ lives. So, out in the sun it was for us during recess and lunchtime.

Those were the days when we would literally gulp down our meals so that we would have more time for play. 

And, “talo ang pikon” was the name of the game.

Weekends at home were no different. We looked forward to Saturday afternoons when most kids in our neighborhood would play habulan, hide and seek, tag and patintero under the sun.

There was also time for basketball, football, and biking and even baseball.

When I was done with school, my first job was as a teacher. Although I could not join the kids as they played the games of my youth when it was recess or lunchtime — I enjoyed seeing them play.

But, more than that, it was fun to see how they settled disagreements among themselves.

The weaker ones ended up crying and running to their teachers to tell on the others. The ones who enjoyed a game for what it was worth took winning and losing in the same stride.

As a teacher, I knew then that the ones who knew how to play games — win or lose — would be the ones who would survive better in life.

So, I was a little nostalgic when I attended the launch of “Larong Pinoy 2” sponsored by Johnson’s Baby Powder.

As I sat and listened to the presentation that afternoon, I was transported to a time when life was just the way I had always wanted it to be. 

If there is one thing that I discovered that afternoon, something that I had known all along, it’s that many teachers share Johnson’s Baby Powder’s belief that children’s values can be developed at a very early age.

“Johnson’s Baby Powder is all about nurturing care,” said Tere Ching, marketing manager, Johnson & Johnson Baby franchise. “As a brand it embodies the power of a mother’s touch to communicate, not just her love but also to foster bonds with her child.”  

As I listened, I was amused at how the event made me rediscover the importance of playing, and the values that good play fosters.

Kids so easily absorb what they see, hear and experience. As a teacher, I recall that I would always insert a little game into the lesson plan so that I could keep the kids’ interest and so that in my own little way I would help them learn about fair play — and life, too.

There are so many books about parenting out there, and it could take most parents a lifetime to read all of them. I have often heard many a parent say that they learn more about their kids, and also more from their kids, in two hours of play rather than they would or could from reading any book on parenting.

“It’s true that values are caught, not taught,” my sociology teacher said when I was in college. “The more we preach to kids, the less they learn. But, if we give them the time to play and we take the time to listen, we would have them better and more mature citizens in the future.”

Children pick lessons up easier when they are taught through firsthand experience, and when they learn in ways that are familiar to them. That’s why playtime is believed to be a good venue to impart lessons to kids.

Let The Play Begin

Johnson’s Baby Powder chose to champion teaching values through play in the successful Larong Pinoy campaign.

When Johnson’s Baby Powder embarked on its Larong Pinoy program last year, children responded enthusiastically to Pinoy games, which were interactive, energetic and competitive. They enjoyed the freedom to jump, run, and sweat out their joyful energy outdoors. And through simple traditional Filipino games, children were able to learn important core values like mental sharpness, friendship, teamwork and leadership. Several barangays and malls in the metro became the venues for teaching these values through play. In the course of playing with their peers in Larong Pinoy, children experience the beginnings of values development, helping mold them into well-rounded and grounded kids.

Here Come The Heroes

Because of the success of Larong Pinoy, Johnson’s Baby Powder continues its commitment to developing children through play. This year, however, it has made Larong Pinoy more meaningful.

This year, Johnson’s Baby Powder launched “Larong Pinoy, Laro ng Munting Bayani.” This move is the company’s way of expanding the cause of teaching children through play and at the same time allow the kids to live good values beyond play, and into the communities where they live.

Mga munting bayani are kids who live out good values they learn from play, so that they become assets to their communities. To help raise these kids, Johnson’s Baby Powder took a close look at traditional Pinoy games and enhanced their mechanics in order for kids to learn the core values more easily. These enhanced games like luksong matinik, pateamtero, sipa and tumbang premyo, provide children enjoyable avenues to learn. Through Larong Pinoy, they can learn respect for themselves and for others. They can also learn to release themselves from insecurity and lack of initiative, and overcome barriers that hinder them from maximizing their potential. They gain knowledge of the value of teamwork not only with family members but most especially with their playmates in the neighborhood or in schools. Learning all of these can teach kids to develop a winning attitude, and teach them to constantly strive to improve.

With little steps like the Larong Pinoy, Laro ng Munting Bayani campaign, Johnson’s Baby Powder hopes to start nation building, by molding the good citizens of tomorrow — our children.

 “We invite moms from all over the Philippines to encourage their kids to play, even join in the games themselves, and reaffirm the lessons their little ones learn from play, ” Christine Balingit, group brand manager for Johnson’s Baby, adds. “Let’s start building a nation of mga munting bayani from our children today. ”