"My child can smell danger a mile off and then heads straight towards it"
They show no fear!
Sound familiar?
Children are learning how much thrill to seek before things go wrong but here's the thing .. we don't want them to get hurt. Ideally, we want kids to experience risk so that they learn how to stay safe.
Mother Nature was a wise old bird; she wired kids up to seek out danger so they could do just that. As a result, they become resilient and well rounded adults who can look after themselves... cool eh? And it's been proven by researchers!
But what is the best way to achieve this without anything more than the inevitable bumps and grazes?
The Forest School answer is to let children experience controlled risk.
For example, here are some ideas for controlling risks with heights;
Tie something at the height you don't want them to go past.
Try and let children get up independently because If kids can't get up, they can't get down and that's a problem.
Make sure what they are climbing is safe.
Check the ground underneath.
Make sure they have the right shoes on.
It's important to remember despite safety measures, accidents do happen but try to see them as learning opportunities that will keep them safe in life.
That's all folks
259 words.. 59 words over my 200 limit
Keep playing out,
Love, Sally
