Children's Handclaps Informal Learning in Play

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Beverly J. Stoeltje

Abstract

The handclaps presented in the pages that follow represent a form of children's folklore, the traditional formalized play activities of children that are engaged in and maintained by the children themselves, within the peer group... This work is presented in the conviction that children's folklore, representing what might
aptly be called the indigenous art forms of childhood, unquestionably valued and enjoyed by the children themselves, can constitute a significant resource in the development of culturally responsive educational programs.


The author, Beverly Stoeltje, has singled out handclaps as an especially interesting and attractive part of the children's folklore repertoire, in an effort to make them accessible and useful to teachers. The children, given the chance, will do the rest. (Richard Bauman, Introduction to Children's Handclaps)

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Author Biography

Beverly J. Stoeltje

Beverly J. Stoeltje is Professor Emerita of Anthropology and of Folklore and Ethnomusicology, at Indiana University.  Her research has concentrated on gender, ritual and festival, performance, traditional authorities and legal anthropology.  Her research topics include the American West and Rodeo as Performance; Gender and Representation; Queenmothers in Ghana. Among her publications are Children’s Handclaps (1978) and Beauty Queens on the Global Stage (with R. Wilk and C. B. Cohen) (1996); she has served as editor of special issues of the Journal of Folklore Research and Africa Today with articles in the Journal of American Folklore, the Research Review (Ghana) and chapters in multiple volumes. Her current research is focused on the Ashanti people of Ghana, with special attention to Queen Mothers and chieftaincy disputes.