Advocacy
Why is Advocating for Play so Important? Alarming Trends Affecting Childhood IPA USA is deeply concerned by many alarming trends…
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MINI GRANT OPPORTUNITY To be eligible for a grant, you must be a current member of IPA USA The USA…
What We Do
IPA-USA carries forth the mission of its parent organization, IPA World. To accomplish the Vision, Mission, and Guiding Principles, IPA-USA…
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Membership
If you believe that: • Play, along with the basic needs of nutrition, health, shelter and education, is vital for the development of the potential of all children;• Family participation needs to be strengthened by support systems such as play leadership;• Environments and programs to meet children’s real needs should be created. If you are…
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“Scholarly Snapshots” now available on Amazon This book gathers 16 theorists from diverse spaces to see what they each have to say about play. From deep in the 19th century until contemporary times, across cultures and different disciplines, through many languages, these theorists observed children in their finest form, at play. From social interactions to meaningful…
Read MoreState Play Advocates
How does IPA/USA advocate for play across the nation? By having advocates like you at the local level. Not all support for this cause is monetary – sometimes the most important donation you can make is your time. We are in the process of expanding this network and would love your participation. Please feel free…
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Your support can make all the difference in a child’s day. IPA-USA is a 501(c)(3), and your donation is tax-deductible.
Read MorePlay Talk
Articles and Discussions around the importance of Play. Members can find more in our Play Blast and eJournals!

Memories of Play – an essay
As we mentioned in our last post, we recently shared two publications with our members, Priorities in Play and Inspirationally Playful. These were shared with us at the 2023 IPA World Conference, by John McKendrick of Glasgow Caledonian University. As he states in his forward, Included with this collection is an essay from IPA USA…
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“Redressing The Play Deficit”
At the 2023 IPA World Conference in Glasgow, Scotland, John McKendrick of Glasgow Caledonian University shared two collections of essays, Priorities In Play and Inspirationally Playful. (IPA USA membership is required to view the full publications. For log-in questions, please contact us here.) As John states in Priorities In Play, “The idea behind this collection…
Continue ReadingWhy Kids Need to Play in Nature: A Guide
Visit the website below for statistics on why forest and outdoor learning experiences are needed for healthy development. 50 ways forest and outdoor learning experiences benefit child development: https://www.forestholidays.co.uk/outdoor-education-and-child-development-guide/ Our piece covers a few essential things: Statistics on how much outdoor experiences help children learn. The important skills like confidence and responsibility that kids learn by being outdoors. How outdoor…
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