The Advantages that are Associated with Outdoor Play in the Early Years - Essay Example

Value of Outdoor Play in the Early Years s Submitted by s: Findings and Analysis The main aim of this research was toexplore the advantages that are associated with outdoor play in the early years and identify the barriers that exist to outdoor play in the early years. It also aims at understand the strategies that are employed by the practitioners that are associated with the outdoor play in promoting play in the early years. As it can be seen from the previous chapters, play and the outdoors typically complement each other and outdoor play in the early years is important to many attributes that are associated with learning in young children as well as their development. In this section I shall dwell on the advantages that re are associated with children in their Early Years interacting with the outdoor environment and the benefits that is brings to their development. From the literature review, it can be concluded that education in the Early Years is dependent on the outside space since it can be considered as a natural place for exploration, engagement and one that provides a motivation for learning. Active learning, exploring as well as creative thinking, enhances effective teaching and learning which are all influenced by the kind of environment that the education takes place in. Play forms a very important aspect as far as the development of children is concerned, their learning as well as their wellbeing and it is vital that the practitioners appreciate, value and maintain the play that is associated with children all through the Early Years (Lillemyr, 2009, p. 8). The provision of a good quality outdoor environment can affect the confidence that the children have as well as their independent learning but it should be noted that this is not a sole entity since it is comprised of various activities that have discrete purposes. From the interviews that were conducted with the practitioners, it was clear that outdoor play is advantageous since it basically allows the children that engage in it to have fun while playing while they engage and explore the natural environment and all this works towards their development. This natural setting develops the skills that the children have naturally while making them more confident in the things that they take part in as the grow. From the literature review, there is also the suggestion that the outdoor environment also provides chances that create an equilibrium between the structured activities that are guided by the adults and allowing the children to interact with their particular outdoor spaces. This enables the children to use their imagination and the capability that they have to come up with various solutions when they are faced with an issue. The outdoor environment is appropriate to meeting the requirements that the children have that are associated with the attributes of play and is the most applicable way of providing learning that is founded upon personal experiences as well as interests of the individual. It can also be seen that the outdoor environment gives the children an opportunity to make investigations as well as being engaged without being limited and this is sometimes the only experience that some of the children get in being in an expansive open area (Hopwood-Stephens, 2013, p. 5). Therefore, the children will generally show an enjoyment in the experiences that they get in the outdoor environment and this has been noted to be often ignored by the practitioners in this field (Hendricks, 2011, p. 72). The practitioners always tend to leave the children to play alone in the outdoor environment since they find it difficult to make interactions with them when they are in this kind of environment. The consequence of these can be seen in the impact that is evident in the interaction that exists between the child and the adult that is supposed to be the practitioner meaning that the manner in which the adult deals with the children affects their learning process. In this section is shall consider the barriers that might prevent the children from embracing outdoor play and the effects that it could have on the development of the children. From the literature review, the barriers that exist to allowing the children to play and interact with the environment include funding and also a deficiency in understanding the manner in which the environmental citizenship can be integrated with the settings all the while encouraging outdoor time. The staffs that deal with the children should be given encouragement that will motivate them to appreciate the outdoor space and the manner in which they can be able to integrate the children into this setting. The literature review also notes that not all the children prefer the outdoors and there are cases where children do not want to go outdoors since they do not enjoy the experience. In such cases, the interest that the children are supposed to have in the outside environment is mainly eclipsed by the over-use of technology mainly by the adults that are around them. The cultural shifts that have been seen since the 1960s have also played a huge part in the change in the behavior of the children that makes them prefer staying indoors than interacting with the outdoor environment. The practitioner interviews show that the children are mainly restricted by weather conditions as well as the staff ratio at that particular time. In the cases where it may be very cold, raining or snowing, it is very difficult and even dangerous to take the children outside to play since the children will be exposed to the elements of the weather, which may lead to catastrophic outcomes. The ratio of the staff existing in the institutions where the children are enrolled may also act as a barrier in the instances where they are not enough to watch over all the children when they are in the outdoor environment. When the children are in outdoors, the other activities in the school should not halt and this means that the number of staff should be adequate to cater for all the students that go to the schools including the ones that are not outdoors at a particular time. In some of the cases, the space that is set aside for the children might be too small for them to fit in at a particular time and this makes the balancing of this activity become a difficult issue (Hendricks, 2011, p. 122). It may necessitate that the children be allowed to interact with the outdoors in groups, which means that they will not be able to get ample time to enjoy and engage with the environment in the ways that can be educative and satisfying. In this section, I will explore the strategies that are used by the practitioners to encourage the children to embrace outdoor play that promotes development. From the literature review, it is evident that the children that who do not get a chance to interact and engage with the outdoors may suffer from a nature deficit disorder. Therefore, it is important that the practitioners that deal with these children make sure that they encourage the children to take up outdoor play so that they can be able to develop wholly to avoid any detrimental effects that may be associated with the development of the children. This means that the stakeholders that are concerned are supposed to develop conducive environments that motivate the children to take up outdoor play through coming up with health and safety measure that will enable them to play in a safe manner. The space that the children play in is also supposed to be increased while making sure that the equipment that they need when they are in this environment is available and functioning well to ensure that the children get a complete experience from their outdoor play. The practitioners work towards coming up with an environment that will be enabling, which should have resources that are meticulously arranged and planned and they take into consideration the ideas of the children and their parents when coming up with the design of the outdoor environment. The practitioners also try to be as imaginative as possible when coming out with the outdoor playing environments that the children are supposed to interact with so that they can develop holistically. From the interviews that were conducted with the practitioners, it was evident that they employ a variety of approaches, which are supposed to work towards the encouragement of the taking up of the outdoor activities by the children. Most of the strategies that were identified through the interviews that were conducted had a connection to the ones that the literature review came up with. From the interviews, risk assessment, free flow, staff meetings as well as the involvement of parents were the factors that came up which were considered to be used as the strategies to make sure that the outdoor experience gives the children a complete development experience. The practitioners generally provide free flow both indoors and outdoors while making sure that they remain committed to the outdoor policy while incorporating it into the planning that they do concerning the development of the children. The staffs is also supposed to take part in risk evaluations each and every time before the children are allowed to access the area so that cases of injuries to the children when they are in this environment can be reduced and avoided. The practitioners also meetings that centre on the discussions regarding the manner in which they can be able to develop and make the outdoor more inspiring and motivating for the children. Bibliography Hendricks, B. 2011, Designing for play, 1st ed, Ashgate, Burlington. Hopwood-Stephens, I. 2013, Learning on your doorstep, 1st ed, Taylor and Francis, Hoboken. Lillemyr, O. 2009, Taking play seriously, 1st ed, IAP, Information Age Pub, Charlotte, NC. Read More