" I think more than anything , adults are a little fearful of children 's play , " said joan almon , executive director of the alliance for childhood , a nonprofit pro-play group .
Ms. almon knows of a soccer coach who started allowing children to organize their own scrimmages during practice while he stood silently on the sidelines , and a hockey coach in chicago who ends practices by shooing all the adults off the ice and letting the kids skate as they please .