by Kathy Eugster, MA
What is risky play?
Ellen Beate Hansen Sandseter, professor at Queen Maud University College of Early Childhood Education in Norway and an expert in the field of risky play in young children, defines risky play as thrilling and exciting forms of play that involve uncertainty and a risk, either real or perceived, of physical injury. All children over the age of one year will engage in some form of risky play at times.
Children’s emotional experiences when engaged in risky play will range from exhilaration to fear and it is likely that these feelings, in combination, make risky play fun and attractive to children. Children become highly aroused emotionally during risky play and feelings can be expressed in happy, joyful, and enthusiastic facial expressions, laughing, shrieking, yelling, and screaming.
Categories of risky play
Researchers have come up with a number of categories of risky play, which I think are very interesting to have a look at in order to understand risky play better. Please note that some of these categories overlap.
Play at great heights
Here the danger of injury is from falling. Examples would include all forms of climbing, jumping from high surfaces, and hanging/dangling or balancing from heights.
Play at high speed
Here the danger comes from uncontrolled speed that could lead to collision. Examples would include bicycling, skateboarding, skiing, sledding, sliding, running, and swinging at high speeds.
Play with dangerous “tools”
This play could lead to injuries, for instance, from playing with sharp sticks or ropes, or real tools such as knives, saws, or hammers.
Play near dangerous elements
Here there is a risk that children may fall from something, such as a cliff, or into something, such as water or a fire pit.
Rough-and-tumble play
Here children can accidently get hurt or hurt others, for example, from play fighting, wrestling, or fencing.
Play where children go exploring alone
The danger here is that children may disappear from the supervision of adults or even get lost. Examples would be allowing children independent mobility in environments with no fences or in places that are unsupervised.
Risky play can be beneficial
Although there certainly are elements of risk for children engaging in risky play, we also need to look at what happens when adults overly restrict risky play for children. Recent research suggests that it is important for children to have opportunities for free play to explore, experiment, take risks, and face challenges, or in other words, to engage in risky play.
Dr. Mariana Brussoni, professor of Pediatrics and Public Health, University of British Columbia, has studied the role of risk in childhood and has found that engaging in risky play is important for children in order to prevent injuries. Through risky play, children learn how their bodies work and what they are comfortable with. By doing this, they are learning fundamental risk management skills. Play environments can be ideal for children to develop skills in being able to assess and handle risk.
Dr. Stuart Brown, founder of the National Institute for Play, says that resilience, or the ability to face, manage, and master stress and adversity, is an important quality that children need to develop, and that play, especially risky play, can be considered one way to help children develop these positive qualities.
Researchers have found that an increased focus on safety has resulted in more boring play spaces and playgrounds, resulting in less interest in play and less physical activity for children. Researchers have also found that more restrictive play environments may result in negative long-term consequences such as reduced well-being, excessive risk taking, or increased anxiety. Because risky play includes elements of challenge for children, this type of play helps children learn how to be mindful of and to handle fear.
But risky play can be dangerous!
Yes, there is a potential for injuries, or worse, as a result of risky play and parents do have legitimate worries when children begin to play in a risky manner. What should parents do? You don’t want to be over-protective and eliminate your child’s risky play altogether. On the other hand, you don’t want to be too permissive or even uninvolved when your child engages in risky play.
How can we balance this need for perceived risk in childhood with injury prevention?
Although researchers have found that risky play can be beneficial and allows children opportunities to assess risk and to test and develop their physical abilities, parents must balance the potential benefits of risky play against the possible risk of injuries to their children.
First of all, we need to understand the difference between risks and hazards. In general, researchers have used the word “risk” in the context of risky play to denote a situation whereby a child can recognize and evaluate a challenge and decide on a course of action, for example, deciding whether to jump off a high platform or climb to a certain height. This is in contrast to the word “hazard,” which is something inherently dangerous that children cannot assess for themselves, for example a nail sticking out of a piece of wood or sharp exposed metal edges on playground equipment. Hazards must be eliminated from children’s play environments, however risks, as defined above, should not necessarily be eliminated.
Secondly, injury prevention research has indicated that higher levels of supervision by adults are associated with lower injury rates in children, where supervision is defined as active watching of a child’s activities rather than just a general monitoring or awareness of a child’s activities. Thus, researchers advocate high levels of active and age-appropriate supervision extending throughout childhood.
Using concepts of parent-child play to supervise children’s risky play
To supervise children’s risky play, parents can use various strategies I have identified for Child-Directed Playtime and Parent-Directed Playtime that I have outlined in previous Blog articles:
6 Key Concepts for Child-Directed Play with Your 3-10 Year-old Child
Troubleshooting Child-Directed Play
Parent-Directed Playtime: Different than Child-Directed Playtime but just as important!
Directive or Nondirective? What Kind of a Playtime Parent Are You?
I will summarize a few of these ideas here.
Child-Directed Playtime
Mariana Brussoni recommends that parents provide their children with an appropriate play environment and then “get out of the way” and let children play the way they choose. This type of free play, when supervised to keep it safe and non-destructive, will decrease anxiety and increase confidence in children. Parents can facilitate this type of play by using concepts from Child-Directed Playtime that I have described elsewhere.
Child-Directed Playtime is where you allow your child to play freely without being told what to do. With Child-Directed Playtime you are also watching and supervising your child to make sure the play remains safe and non-destructive. Here are some strategies for Child-Directed Playtime when you are supervising risky play:
- Provide clear rules for safe play.
- Provide focused attention to your child by watching your child’s play activities.
- Allow your child to make choices and decisions on how to do things without being directed by you (as long as things remain safe and non-destructive).
- Describe objectively out loud what you are seeing your child doing to let your child know you are attentive (“You’ve decided to climb over there … You’re running fast down that hill … You’re piling those stones up on the rock.”).
- Identify any feelings you see coming up in your child, for example, fear, excitement, joy, frustration, nervousness, curiosity, etc. (“That’s scary for you … You are really excited up there … You’re nervous about stepping on that … You’re feeling curious about that.”).
- Encourage your child by focusing on their efforts and strengths (“You’re balancing very carefully on that … You’re trying really hard to climb that … You’re holding on tight … Looks like you know how to ride over that bump!”).
- Follow your child’s directions if they are appropriate.
- Limit any unsafe or destructive behaviors your child may engage in.
Parent-Directed Playtime
This is where parents can “jump in” to support their children more directly during the playtime when their children need more structure, guidance, help, and direction from their parents. Parents can facilitate this type of play by using concepts from Parent-Directed Playtime that I have described elsewhere. Here are some strategies for Parent-Directed Playtime when you are supervising risky play:
- Provide information, guidance, and support to help your child master certain skills, such as climbing, swinging, balancing, kicking, or throwing.
- Teach your child risk assessment and safety strategies and to ask for help if needed.
- Support your child in taking turns, respecting others, and playing fair.
- Engage your child in play by providing ideas and suggestions for play, being enthusiastic, and engaging together in play.
- Regulate your child’s physical and emotional arousal level when you notice your child becoming over-excited or out of control.
- Limit any unsafe or destructive behaviors your child may engage in.
Here’s something you may be interested in:
You can always “back off” to a Child-Directed Playtime style to let your child take more control of the playtime after you have provided more direct support to your child with Parent-Directed Playtime strategies.
In conclusion
You want to challenge your child to take appropriate risks and master skills, but you also want to support your child in learning to stay safe and to not take dangerous or inappropriate risks.
Finally, researchers have found that the overall positive health effects of providing opportunities for risky play for children provide greater benefits than the health effects associated with avoiding risky play altogether.
References and Resources
http://outdoorplaybook.ca/learn/play-research/safety-research/
https://www.playcore.com/news/how-play-helps-us-develop-resilience
Brussoni, M., Gibbons, R., Gray, C., Ishikawa, T., Sandseter, E.B.H., Bienenstock, A., Chabot, G., Fuselli, P., Herrington, S., Janssen, I., et al. (2015). What is the Relationship between Risky Outdoor Play and Health in Children? A Systematic Review. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health, 12, 6423-6454. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph120606423
Sandseter, E.B.H., & Kleppe R. (2019). Outdoor Risky Play. In: Tremblay, R.E., Boivin, M., Peters, R.DeV., eds. Brussoni, M., topic ed. Encyclopedia on Early Childhood Development [online]. https://www.child-encyclopedia.com/outdoor-play/according-experts/outdoor-risky-play
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Copyright Kathy Eugster, MA, 2023.
Please feel free to pass on this article to anyone you think might find it useful.
Contact me at: kathy@pacificspiritplay.com