Woodland School News

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Why is Risky Play is essential for my child’s development?

Risky play is any thrilling, adventurous activity involving a risk of physical or social injury. Risk taking and risk management is essential for developing resilience, confidence, and risk-assessment skills in children. It includes climbing, high speeds, using tools, and rough-and-tumble play, allowing children to test boundaries, overcome fears, build resilience and learn to manage potential danger. A lack of opportunities to explore appropriate risk is linked both the risk seeking and risk adverse behaviour in teenagers and adults, both of which can limit an individual’s ability to embrace opportunities or keep themselves safe.

Key Benefits of Risk-Taking in Play

Physical Development: Risky play enhances strength, coordination, balance, and agility through climbing, running, and jumping.
Mental & Emotional Growth: Building resilience, self-confidence, and independence by managing fear and overcoming challenges.
Risk Management: Teaches children to evaluate hazards, understand their own limitations, and make safer choices.
Problem-Solving: Encourages children to self-find solutions to obstacles, such as determining if they can safely cross a log or jump from a height.

6 Main Types of Risky Play

Great Heights: Climbing trees, structures, or jumping from high places.
High Speed: Running fast, cycling, or using wheels to create thrilling sensations.
Dangerous Tools: Using items like hammers, knives, or saws, which helps children learn responsibility.
Dangerous Elements: Playing near fire, deep water, or in, for example, a forest school setting.
Rough-and-Tumble: Wrestling and play-fighting, which helps children distinguish between play and actual conflict.
Disappearing from adult view: Hiding or wandering off, which provides independence while still in a safe, monitored environment.

If you would like to learn more, or prefer to learn in a more visual way, please do explore the video links below which explain Risk Taking during play further.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C_aqapgaodM&t=121s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cO4qU2N3W48&t=43s

I wonder what a Play Schema is?

Play schemas are patterns of repeated behaviour, exhibited by children during play. These help them to explore and understand the world around them.

Some key examples of play schemas are:

Orientation - The urge to hang upside down, get the view from under the table or on top of the dresser and other actions that are part of the Orientation schema. In order to 'know' what it is like to hang upside down or see things from a different point of view you must take yourself into those positions.

Positioning - Do you find yourself Positioning things neatly into alignment on your desk, ordering the books on the self, getting creative when you plate the dinner or even just tidying-up.

Connection - Joining train tracks, clicking together pieces of Lego, running a string from one thing to another... the urge of Connection. This can mean connecting and disconnecting too, building followed by destruction.

Trajectory - The urge to throw, drop and other actions that are all part of the Trajectory schema. Some other Trajectory actions are things like climbing up and jumping off (Trajectory of ones own body), putting your hand under running water (interacting with things that are already moving) and the classic, throwing and dropping (making it happen).

Enclosure/Container - The urge to fill up cups with water, climb into cardboard boxes or kitchen draws, build fences for the animals or to put all the animals inside the circular train track.

Transporting - Transporting can be the urge to carry many things on your hands at one time, in jars, in buckets and baskets, or even better containers with wheels.

Enveloping - To have a sheet over your head, wrapping things in fabrics or with tape and paper - all actions seen in the Enveloping schema. An extension of this is peek-a-boo.

Rotation - Anything that goes around anything that is circular - wheels, turning lids, watching the washing machine on spin cycle, drawing circles, spinning around on the spot, being swung around.

Transformation - The urge to Transform can come in many forms; holding all your food in your mouth for a long time to see what it turns into, mixing your juice with your fish pie, water with dirt, or helping Granny with mixing the bread dough

During Woodland school sessions, we adults have been observing schemas in children’s play and have used this to help inform our planning and resourcing for each new session.

I wonder what Play Types are?

Play Types are a framework of 16 distinct, observable behaviours, first defined by Play Work Researcher Bob Hughes. They describe how children play both physically and socially, helping adults understand and facilitate developmental needs. 

Key Types of Play (Bob Hughes' Taxonomy)

Symbolic Play: Using objects to represent other things.
Rough and Tumble Play: Physical play involving wrestling or chasing.
Socio-Dramatic Play: Acting out scenes from everyday life.
Social Play: Any play that involves interacting with others.
Creative Play: Creating something new, such as drawing or crafting.
Communication Play: Using words, gestures, and sounds.
Dramatic Play: Playing, but not in a make-believe way (e.g., trying on clothes).
Locomotor Play: Movement for the sake of movement, such as running or jumping.
Deep Play: Activities involving a high level of risk or intensity, allowing children to overcome fears.
Exploratory Play: Investigating new objects or environments.
Fantasy Play: Acting out scenes that are not part of real life.
Imaginative Play: Creating imaginary worlds and rules.
Mastery Play: Controlling the environment, such as building with blocks.
Object Play: Playing with items, such as toys or natural materials.
Role Play: Adopting a persona.
Recapitulative Play: Play that allows children to explore their ancestry or ancient behaviours.

Wish List 

Please find below a list of items we would appreciate as donations in Woodland School. 

• Logs and stumps
• Wooden pallets
• Hammocks
• Junior hacksaws
• Potato peelers
• Small hammers
• Litter pickers
• A saw bench or cutting table
• Wool and thread
• Rubber mallets
• Play tunnels
• Pop up camping or play tents
• Camping chairs
• Hot chocolate powder
• Biscuits (for dipping in hot chocolate)
• Any contacts anybody may have where we could source for free or get a grant for a permanent shelter of some kind.