To Prompt Practitioners and Early Childhood Management Centre Teachers

Challenging: Supporting Children’s Outdoor Risk- taking Environment in

Ireland

Early Childhood Studies

Year 3

Thesis

Hongshu Liu

20082401
To Prompt Practitioners and Early Childhood Management Centre Teachers
Challenging: Supporting Children’s Outdoor Risk- taking Environment in
Ireland

Chapter Two
Literature Review
 To Prompt Practitioners and Early Childhood Management Centre Teachers
Challenging: Supporting Children’s Outdoor Risk- taking Environment in
Ireland

Introduction
The outdoor play environment is an important beginning and foundation for children
on physical, learning, and mental health have significant development. Children can
be in close contact with nature in outdoor environment in terms of play materials,
physical principles, spatial changes and natural conditions, as well as active physical
activities, which can not be carried out in indoor or non-outdoor environments. The
background and outdoor environment of early childhood education have always been
regarded as a crucial part of the early childhood education curriculum (Grubbels et al,
2012). However, when it comes to outdoor travel, the first thing to think about is risk,
which means how child care center staff reduce risk. Adults protect children under
appropriate conditions while allowing them to grow up at risk. Children care facilities
will protect them, cultivate the understanding of safety knowledge, and how to
promote learning in the process of outdoor play has become a necessary discussion
topic for early childhood educators and researchers.

2.1 Definition of Risk-taking

Thrilling and exciting play is an interactive form of risk play in which danger is
generally referred to as some physical damage (Shielta, 2013). There are many
concepts about adventure in outdoor play and learning, especially in Forest school. In
other words, risk-taking can be defined in negative or positive, and the subject itself is
influenced by individual views and practices. In general, children’s outdoor play are
physical as the primary point, such as rock climbing, kicking, cycling, slide, seesaw,
jumping up and down, frolicking and chasing, shooting with toy guns, rolling on
trampolines, and climbing trees, and so on (Kleppe et al, 2017). Screaming, or
laughter and large movements can straight forward become accelerators that stimulate
body energy and pleasure, making it easier to recognize obvious body language and
sound (Kleppe et al, 2017).
According to Sandseter pointed out that high-level games, high-speed games,

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 To Prompt Practitioners and Early Childhood Management Centre Teachers
Challenging: Supporting Children’s Outdoor Risk- taking Environment in
Ireland

dangerous tools games, dangerous element games, rolling games, children's disappear,
and lost games are all named risk play activities. This classification is based on
certain characteristics of the environment that take responsibility for behaviors or
ideas of children, such as slopes can slide (Sandseter, 2009, p. 441). However, there is
also evidence that risk can cause physical and psychological adverse reactions by
Sandseter (2007) further puts forward this view, the anxiety that children experience
may include trying to experience never before is simple and important in
uncontrollable roles. Thus, the concept and significance of risk is always an open
topic in early childhood education (Sandseter, 2007).

In current years, more and more people interest in child risk-taking in research and
practice, and a more optimistic view of terms related to exposure of children to risk
outdoor play. But the more concerned it is that today’s children against risk societies
where adults have been controlled and restrict children’s living environment
increasingly (Gill, 2007; Madge and Barker, 2007; Waters and Begley, 2007).
Especially in family, educational, and social settings. Furthermore, risking outdoor
play defined as pleasant and exciting games, including the possibility of causing harm
to the body (Hammond, 2010). Downey et al pointed out that acceptable risks are
children of learning and developing from experience and challenges, but do not cause
any emotional, physical, and mental breaking (Downey et al, 2004). Sandseter
suggested that children seek risk and stimulation plays in which their bodies
participate, the brain provides stimulants until fear attacks, but eventually, they show
positive emotions for reward (Sandseter, 2009a, 2009b, 2010). Sandsett believes that
risk play experiences are significant principle of outdoor environment. To promote
children’s learning, physical development, health, a large degree of emotion and
well-being, to encourage their social skills and spirit of adventure. Hence, the
risk-taking level of outdoor play for children is defined as a challenge, and children
need to be provided with a good platform to improve their skill level and provide

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 To Prompt Practitioners and Early Childhood Management Centre Teachers
Challenging: Supporting Children’s Outdoor Risk- taking Environment in
Ireland

psychology of excitement or fear of adventure. But it also includes injury, such as

physical, psychological, and mental harm to children. education-related curricula and
practices on risk in Ireland are outlined in the next section.

2.2. Benefits of Risk Play on Early Years Setting in Ireland

If children play in an indoor environment, the inability to outdoor play with relative
freedom seems trivial (Stephenson, 2002). Outdoor is described as a year-round
environment and opening a fresh air environment. Participation in risk play gives
children access to risk and management (Maynard and Waters, 2007). Even if young
children are taking risks, they will produce new learning experiences, such as cycling,
mountain climbing, skateboarding, and swimming (Bilton, 2010). Besides,
considering that Ireland and other countries have some obese or overweight children
who need to be physically positive, outdoor play is the best activities in early
childhood or adolescence for them, it is particularly relevant (Martensson et al, 2009).
And playing in a challenge and positive potential risk play also have a promotional of
children’s self-confidence and functioning abilities (Abraham, 2010; World Health
Organization, 2016). According to Waite (2010) pointed out that children can do more
through their own physical and mental experience of the surrounding environment
and what happens, natural sounds, and build knowledge based on real events that
connect with the brain, mind, sense, feeling, and touching instead of learning through
colloquial, written explanations, and video expressions transmitted by practitioners,
teachers and parents (Waite, 2010). Early Years schools are more use of flexible
teaching programs may stimulating, encouraging, and developing children’s
autonomy and potential (Waters & Maynard, 2010). Maynard et al (2013) identify that
teachers often use outdoor teaching methods to help them observe children’s needs
individually, interactions, interests, personality, and development more effectively,
and get information from observation, to explore children’s resilience, executive and
risk management skills. Children affected by the free and open environment are less

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 To Prompt Practitioners and Early Childhood Management Centre Teachers
Challenging: Supporting Children’s Outdoor Risk- taking Environment in
Ireland

stressed to express, act, and can observe the skills and knowledge they do not reflect
in indoor activities.

The literature review commented on risk play in benefits. Kernan and Devine (2010)
emphasized that children are more absorbed in outdoor play, to listen to teachers’
language when they meet risk situations patiently, and more accepting of nature and
new things (Kernan and Devine, 2010, p. 371-385). This observed is the dramatic
stage of Piaget and Smilansky reflecting on benefits of risk play in an outdoor
environment, such as the theory of outdoor play is reflected in rising from sensory
movement (Piaget) and function (Smilansky) to rules. Therefore, children in risk play
enhance the process of cognitive development, compared with indoor or refused to
risk play of children’s development is more completed (Manwaring & Taylor, 2006).
There have more considering mental health and emotional benefit of risk play.
Thomas & Thompson (2004) described that play in risk is also a way to avoid injury
in the process of development (Manwaring & Taylor, 2006), risk play has been shown
to stabilize children’s emotions and actively improve their learning efficiency, social
skills. For social skills, risk play provides children conversation with the same ages in
informal and relaxed environments, makes them more familiar with their peers, puts
down their guard, more spontaneous communication. Risk play brings more children’
s social language development, social inclusiveness, personal self-confidence, and
personal identity in the formation of organizations (Casey, 2003). Thus, children play
in outdoor environment has many benefits for children’s growth, languages, physical,
psychology, learning, and development with a significant impact on children’s life.

2.3 Risk-Taking and The Irish Early Childhood Curriculum

Encourage children to take risks, such as climbing, trying new food, doing things
differently, and trying to get objects high on shelves. Aistear highlighted the risk play
in an outdoor environment is the earliest educational environment in life and the most

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 To Prompt Practitioners and Early Childhood Management Centre Teachers
Challenging: Supporting Children’s Outdoor Risk- taking Environment in
Ireland

important in the development of children (NCCA, 2004). In the new framework of

early education in Ireland, the risk play outdoor environment is the fatal key to the
development of children to process and has a deep impact on the cognition, behavior,
and values of the natural environment (NCCA, 2009). As children participate in and
experience risk play and try to recognized and understand the impact of the
environment, it is further clarified that risk is a high-quality education program in an
outdoor environment (Massey, 2002). Aistear advocated that opportunities for
challenging and developing physical skills for children. According to Aistear
well-being for children, it provides a clear curriculum for practitioners and teachers,
with different ages, themes, learning goals, and personalities of children individually
(Siolta, 2006). Practitioners and teachers guide children’s background and risk-taking
in the educational environment, in the form of protection, to encourage or give advice
to support them in risk-taking activities. So children can be build their confidence,
more independent, know how to make a decision and take the lead, rather than
directly telling them the solution.

A new Aistear early childhood curriculum framework was subsequently developed by

the Irish Department of Early Childhood Education to more effectively ensure that
children are harm-free in outdoor activities while enhancing physical play facilities in
2009 (NCCA, 2009). Committed to children in the time, space of risk play outdoor
environment, children’s health, well-being, physical skills and learning ability to
improve, identity and belonging, accept more from exploration, communication, and
thinking (OECD, 2006). When children request if they can play in a risk play outdoor
environment, this is crucial for them has been emphasized (Tovey, 2007). The Irish
curriculum framework for early learning is a highly respected educational copy for
practitioners, teachers, and researchers. Risk play provides a stimulating, creative,
social contact, and values early years.

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 To Prompt Practitioners and Early Childhood Management Centre Teachers
Challenging: Supporting Children’s Outdoor Risk- taking Environment in
Ireland

2.4 The Outdoor Learning and Risky Play: Practitioner’s Role

Over the past 30 years, many countries have actively addressed child care including,
care mechanisms and frameworks in the Irish context certainly, which is a new
process for children. Back in the 1990s, the early childhood education sector was
largely unregulated, often overlooked, and the main form of childcare was
family-based in Ireland. Until the end of the 1990s, Childcare reflects ‘that the main
caring ideology is linked within church-state-family relationships’ (Gallagher, 2012, p.
467). Subsequently, there have been many changes in Ireland's growing childcare
mechanisms with society, in which children are cared for and transferred to secondary
care units. Most obvious change is the increase in employment opportunities for
women which according to Folbre (2001), led to a ‘care crisis.’ This sudden work puts
significant pressure on families to concern supply and demand, and childcare becomes
a public issue, not a private one (Brannen and Moss, 2003). The importance of child
care in Ireland, unlike in other EU countries, the Department of Education and Skill.
(2015) emphasized that the level of education has improved and the United Nations
Committee on Rights (UNCRC) has made outstanding achievements in the wider
application of children (Department of Education and Skill, 2015).

Under the Department of Children and Youth Affairs (2013a) highlighted the child
education sector has maximum welfare for children outdoor, and the need to
strengthen the educational level of adults living with children in the fields of
employment. Teachers, psychologists therapists, they should access childcare, and
training and professional guidance, even qualification and professional status. The
role of professional caregivers, practitioners, and teachers in children’s play is further
clarified as social policy changes. According to CECDE (2007) considered that
children need the help of adults to understand their explorations and to establish
connections between children’s existing knowledge and newly discovered activities.
To say children need adults as a driver of learning and development, while adults are

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 To Prompt Practitioners and Early Childhood Management Centre Teachers
Challenging: Supporting Children’s Outdoor Risk- taking Environment in
Ireland

generally unsure whether they should interfere with their children, let them move on,
and this is also evident in the experiments of Bennett et al. The view of the study has
shown that in some cases, the purpose of outdoor play activities provided by teachers
does not match children. Because outdoor play may have a series of children’s
behaviors, but there is relatively no substantial development or learning progress.
Thus, the role of teachers needs to be consistent with the purpose of children’s
outdoor play in order not to lead to mistakes. However, it encourages practitioners and
teachers to be more concerned about children’s actual play experience and to plan
children’s play programs, develop children’s thought patterns, liberate their nature,
and the role of adults in children’s outdoor play. Furthermore, when adults work with
children in outdoor play, according to Matthew et al (2001, pp.53-80.) point out that
specific skills need to keep a clear mind to recall children’s previous experiences and
connect them with existing materials, give children the ability to talk or express their
ideas and opinions in a comfortable environment, and engage children in play from an
adult perspective, and improve their learning, to help growth (Sénéchal et al, 2001). It
means children considered first, the additional challenge is to identify and develop the
skills needed to communicate with children to enable them to communicate freely
with adults, to achieve the purpose and curriculum of outdoor play, realize the
importance of children’s rights, so that children have good communication skills and
risk-taking.

Summary

This literature review begins with the definition of risk and insight into possible
effects on children’s outdoor play. And analyze how children’s risk-taking works
under the framework of the Irish curriculum, although there are still many
shortcomings. At present, Ireland as one of the EU countries, has a relationship
between aim, learning goal, and research with children’s outdoor play adventure on

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Challenging: Supporting Children’s Outdoor Risk- taking Environment in
Ireland

the premise of professionalism around practitioners, teachers, and childminders.

Furthermore, the maximum implementation of practitioner’s views and practices
under ECCE to ensure children’s rights, improve teaching standards, and explore
children’s potential is documented in many literature reviews. A revised version of the
early childhood curriculum Siolta highlighted the importance of early childhood
risk-taking in Ireland. Risk-taking outdoor play of early childhood not be ignored, it
benefits Irish children to the maximum extent possible. Therefore, the current study
views to explore, practices, development of risk-taking that affect practitioners,
teachers, and center managers of perspective and practice related to children’s outdoor
environment in the Irish context.

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To Prompt Practitioners and Early Childhood Management Centre Teachers
Challenging: Supporting Children’s Outdoor Risk- taking Environment in
Ireland

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 To Prompt Practitioners and Early Childhood Management Centre Teachers
Challenging: Supporting Children’s Outdoor Risk- taking Environment in
Ireland

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Ireland

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Ireland

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