pop culture/media and the “stuff” of childhood

This research topic examines the “stuff of childhood” or those material artifacts that facilitate how children play in both scripted and unscripted ways. Pop culture, media, and other artifacts of childhood, ranging from films, television, music, literature, toys, games, etc. are sources of education, imagination, and reflection for young people, serving as both mirrors and windows about the ways they make sense of the world and themselves. Materials and artifacts enhance and extend play and offer symbolic and representational ideas for play by providing potential scripts that children may or may not choose to take up; materials are also used for artistic expression through drawing, arranging, and creating.