Today we’d like to introduce you to Jessica Lewis.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
A piece of my story comes from my mother, her battle with depression, and what I learned about the benefits of having community during her toughest battles with mental health. She was my first teacher of friendships and relationships through her own experiences with friends and some of the lessons she taught us about friendships.
The classroom also has a place in my story. I am a proud early childhood educator who started in pre-k classrooms.
There I learned a great amount about early human behavior. I’m sure that furthering my education in child development ignited my curiosity about the benefits of play in the classroom and in life. There was a love-and-hate relationship I had with the word “play.” I was aware most people thought we, early childhood educators and students, “just played all day” – oblivious to the transformative experience young children have through play. However, I was determined to find power in it.
My journey within the DC queer community is also a staple in my story. I started as a volunteer at local events, meeting people and at the same time re-introducing myself to my native city, the District of Columbia, as a fully-grown, queer adult. Eventually, I was asked to co-host happy hours as a favor to a friend of mine. That was scary to me, but I was up for it. I’m also sure that my college party-hosting experiences had a big hand in preparing me to be a gatherer of people.
I am still recalling pieces of my story that have all led me to where I am today. I am the creator and founder of Play Play DC where we build community, and authentic connections and embrace our inner child through intensely pleasurable and nostalgic play experiences. We center queer minds and bodies with events like Recess, Pop-Up Field Trips, Skate Dates, and a book club. Today, I am also a kindergarten teacher who is an advocate for play-based learning. I hope to be a teacher who honors the rights, opinions, and creativity of small humans.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It has not been smooth, and I wouldn’t say completely rough, but definitely some fast turns here and there.
Some struggles I’ve run into recently are managing my own anxiety around curating some events from scratch, having to put myself out there, and asking for help has been a big struggle too. I’m excited about having the people around me that have been making the rest of this road a little smoother.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I chose Artist/Creative because I think being a teacher and event curator, who exercises my own art in the classroom, and centers on play and social/emotional learning, I find myself using my profession as a creative outlet for me and my students.
From learning to read, and math I create a fun learning environment by building a classroom community, and classroom culture, through song, dance, sensory, art, and relationships. All with the patience of Job, I’ve heard.
Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?
Growing up, I was mostly shy and quiet. I was athletic and enjoyed being outside riding my bike and playing big-body games like kickball, and football with neighborhood friends. Softball was a big part of my youth. There I was competitive and cared enough about the sport to earn the spot as team captain.
I also enjoyed drawing and painting and I felt I was good enough for my mother to support this for as long as she lived. She encouraged me to play the piano, and then the clarinet, followed by the viola, and I eventually used my voice instrument singing in choirs most of my life.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.playplaydc.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/playplaydc
- Facebook: https://www.faceebook.com/playplaydc
Image Credits
Jay Najeeah, J. Leigh Lewis, and Monet Hinton
