Reflective Playwork by Jacky Kilvington & Ali Wood

Author:Jacky Kilvington & Ali Wood
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Figure 5.1‘Unpredictable logs’. Permission granted by Meares

Indoor play

If the indoor environment allows for freedom and is flexible and adaptable, then it can also provide for exciting places to play. However there are sometimes more rules related to indoor spaces, either about damaging the fabric of the building; not using some of the resources all of the time; making noise if accommodation is shared; keeping movement under control and so on depending upon the whereabouts and nature of the indoor space and its resources. Such rules can limit the play of those who need more freedom and scope. Indoors is also more easily policed by adults who become less and less desirable as ‘supervisors’ the older children become. Many possibilities that are usually only offered indoors can just as easily be offered outdoors, but the same is less possible the other way round. Although we remember a play setting that used to use stepladders and planks inside to create opportunities for climbing and balancing and one particular time when they laid down tarpaulins and brought in piles of earth, sand and bowls of water for children to play! We also remember running a session in a big hall, as part of a play day, where we organized a big plastic box of water which contained shells, weed, sea creatures and so on and the children put on snorkels and masks and put their faces and arms in to explore ‘the depths’.

Reflection – Jacky

I was having tea in a café overlooking a narrow part of a muddy estuary in Norfolk. There was a core group of about ten children, boys and girls in bathing costumes, who spent at least the two hours that I was there creating a whole range of muddy slides down into the stream of water, which they slid down in various ways and then struggled back up to slide down again. Other children came and went but some stayed the whole time working hard on the construction of the slides. There were humps and lumps in the banks so the more daring children took to the air off some of the bumps. They were all completely covered in mud from head to toe and clearly having the most wonderful time. There seemed to be much debating about ways of going down and using or not using things such as plastic bags to slide on and then how to get back up the incredibly slippery slopes. Some children tried to help others and some just did their own thing. There were clearly a few minor injuries but nothing that prevented children from carrying on. It was wonderful to watch.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.