“It's like a fake ring”: fighting games, daily life and children's cultures at school

ABSTRACT

This article aimed to understand the senses / meanings of play fights as bodily practices experienced in the daily lives of children from the 1st to the 5th year of a public school in the city of São Luís do Maranhão. For that, we proposed a qualitative study, based on field research, using participant observation, under the reference of sociology of childhood studies. Seven classifications of play figths were identified based on the analysis of 27 recorded episodes and drawings produced by the children. We conclude that the subjects represent in the “little fights” aspects forged in daily life, (re) creating and sharing concepts of playfulness and violence, as well as the struggles as collections of children's cultures.

Keywords:
Children.; Body.; Play.; Violence