Join in the fun this Playday

 

Playday, the national day for play is coming to Crowcombe on Wednesday 3 August. Celebrations, giving families the opportunity to get outdoors and play, will be held at Crowcombe Village Hall & Play Area with highlights including circus skills, messy play, physical play, sports, games, woodland play, arts and crafts, music and lots, lots more...

The event is one of hundreds being held nationwide to celebrate Playday 2011. Playday is a national awareness raising campaign coordinated by Play England, and this year supported by Savlon. The campaign aims to highlight unprecedented restrictions on children’s opportunities to play, and encourages action so that children can play out more.

Research released to support the campaign shows activities, which for parents were part of growing up, seem to be in danger of disappearing:

·        - 42 per cent of children report they have never made a daisy chain

·        - 32 per cent have never climbed a tree

·       - A quarter of children today have never had the simple pleasure of rolling down a hill

·       - 47 per cent of adults built dens every week as a child, yet 29 per cent of today’s children say they have never built a den at all

·         - A third of children have never played hopscotch

·         - One in ten children have never ridden a bike

Catherine Prisk, Co-Director of Play England, said: “Playing outside, getting muddy, climbing trees and making daisy chains are simple pleasures that many of today’s children are missing out on. Play - outside and indoors - is essential for children's health, well-being and happiness now, and is also important for their future development, to build vital life and social skills. It’s important that we overcome the barriers to outdoor play by addressing parents’ safety concerns, protecting and making the most of outdoor spaces in our communities and acknowledging the pressures on family time. For families, simply building a little time to play in the fresh air every day is a great start.”

Over a third of parents claim their fondest memories of play were making up their own games, proof that outdoor play doesn’t need to be costly or structured.  To take the first step, get out and play on Playday. Visit www.playday.org.uk for details.

All things summery!!

Woodland Playschemes
Monday 8th August — Build a Bug Hotel
Tuesday 9th August— Build a Bird Box
Friday 12th August—Whittling Crafts
Friday 12th August—Wild Night Out (pm)
Monday 15th August—Cooking & mud oven
Tuesday 23rd August—Robin Hood & Maid Marion
Wednesday 24th August—Den & Shelter Building
Thursday 25th August—A Walk on the Wild Side.

All summer as always there will be the flexibility to change, adapt and follow the children’s interest of what they would like to do. We can den build, play with fire, bug hunt, survive, play endless games of capture the flag, foxes and hounds, make bows and arrows...what ever they want (within reason!) Plus whatever spontaneously occurs!!

£20.00 per day / per child. With the option of an early bird drop off from 0900 and night owl pick up till 1700hrs each for £5.00 per child.

WILD NIGHT OUT - An evening playing and exploring in the dark and seeing what comes out to play at night!!! £15.00 per child, times from 1800—2200hrs.

A WALK ON THE WILD SIDE - We will meet at Crowcombe Park Gate and take an adventurous trip across the Quantocks and down to the woods where a feast will await us! Must haves on the trip include armour, tricks and traps!  

The Woodland Playschemes are for those (mainly) 8 years and over and booking is essential. Please contact Louise for further clarification on age restrictions.

For more information and to book contact Louise.

See programme of events for other days in the woods for families, Wild Art, Mad Hatters Tea Party & a Family Camp out!

Mobile: 07775 941353
louise@woodlandplaycentre.co.uk
www.woodlandplaycentre.co.uk

 

International Play Conference - Cardiff

I have had the pleasure of spending the week in Cardiff at the International Play Conference, it was an amazing week meeting new people from all over the globe with a common interest in children's play and children's right to play (UN Convention on the Rights of a child). I am exhausted with all the conversations i have had over the four day period, but utterly inspired and challenged.. There were many debates on what play is, how it is described, that covered a range of 'providers' of play spaces, which in itself created challenging and sparky conversations! We also of course had time to party, which was a must as after all it was the 50th anniversairy of IPA. Meynell did an outstanding Whisky tasting / playful session (for grown-ups!) plus loads more!

Marc Bekoff gave a really interesting and thought provoking presentation on animal play, here you can read the extracts from Marc in the latest Ip-D!p magazine (issue 56: page 12) for playworkers and the play profession.

Play, play, and play some more: Let children be the animals they have the right to be “Better a broken bone than a broken spirit”
I just had the pleasure of attending an incredible meeting called “Playing into the future - surviving and thriving”. The major theme of this international gathering concerned the importance of play for children and how we can create a future where play is valued and where every country and neighborhood upholds every child’s right for freedom and a safe enough environment for playing, as they should. Boundless inspiration came from about 450 delegates from 55 nations, including areas where children don’t play because they’re seriously ill, because their parents, families, or communities can’t afford to allow them play because they have to work, or because there aren’t any safe places to play. However, play is also severely curtailed in affluent areas throughout the world. I was simply astounded that an organization such as Play Wales (there are many like it throughout the world) and these sorts of meetings are even necessary so that kids can be kids. The situation is so dire that there also is a United Nations Convention on the rights of the child. Article 31 is specifically concerned with play: Children have the right to relax and play, and to join in a wide range of cultural, artistic and other recreational activities. My learning curve was vertical as a relative outsider who was there to talk about what we can learn about human play from what we know about nonhuman animal (animal) play. After all, we are big-brained altricial mammals, born helpless and requiring extensive adult care, who learn a variety of skills through different sorts of play. Much of what applies to the social development of nonhuman mammals applies to us. The study of play behavior in animals tells us a lot about what human children need. Basically, we can learn about the various reasons why animals play, why it has evolved and develops as it does, including social development and socialization, physical exercise, cognitive development, and also for learning social skills concerning fairness and cooperation. The basic rules for fair play in animals also apply to humans, namely ask first, be honest, follow the rules, and admit you’re wrong. When the rules of play are violated, and when fairness breaks down, so does play. Play may also be important as “training for the unexpected”. Based on an extensive review of available literature, my colleagues Marek Spinka, Ruth Newberry, and I proposed that play functions to increase the versatility of movements and to recover from sudden shocks such as the loss of balance and falling over, and to enhance the ability of animals to cope emotionally with unexpected stressful situations. To obtain this “training for the unexpected” we suggested that animals actively seek and create unexpected situations in play and actively put themselves into disadvantageous positions and situations. Thus, play is comprised of sequences in which players switch rapidly between well controlled movements similar to those used in “serious” behavior and movements that result in temporary loss of control. In discussions at the meeting in Wales, I also made the point that there are far too many of us, and animals, living in high densities where resources (for example, food and shelter) are limited, play usually decreases or drops out altogether. Mothers (or other care-givers) may stop their kids from playing to save energy compared to stress free environments where play continues. While the imposition of these restrictions seems reasonable the extreme, some might say ludicrous, limits on play in human children are found not only in poor neighborhoods and countries but also in places where there are ample or more than enough resources. As I listened to paper after paper I also found myself worrying about the long-term effects of a non-playing generation(s): Can it be overcome? Will there be enough momentum so that different developmental pathways in which there is less play become patterns that evolve over time? How did it
come to be that we don’t let children be children? What right do we have to rob children of their childhood?
There are many reasons why children need to play, just as young animals need to play. We need free-ranging
kids. They must be allowed to get dirty and learn to take risks and negotiate social relationships that might be
complicated, unexpected, or unpredictable. I love the slogan of Play Wales, Better a broken bone than a broken spirit, attributed to Lady Allen of Hurtwood. We should all embrace it with all our heart. Let’s celebrate World Play Day every May 28. Let’s “rewild” the children of the world. Let them play and let them have their childhood. Of course, adults also need to play more but that’s another story. Play, play, and play some more: Let children be the animals they have the right to be “Better a broken bone than a broken spirit”

Shocking stats...

Research carried out by OnePoll in June 2011, for Savlon, amongst 2,000 parents with children under
16 years old in the UK and 2,000 children between the age of 6 and 15 confirms that children are no
longer spending their time playing outdoors.Ref: Ip-D!p issue 56.

ip-dip no. 56 - feature
New research from Savlon and Play England reveals two thirds of parents always had adventures outdoors as a child but worry their children do not have the same opportunities today. Many of parent’s fondest childhood
memories are of playing outside, however, outdoor activities that for parents were part of growing up seem to be in danger of disappearing:
• 42 per cent of children report they have never made a daisy chain
• 32 per cent have never climbed a tree
• A quarter of children today have never had the simple pleasure of rolling down a hill
• 47 per cent of adults built dens every week as a child, yet 29 per cent of today’s children say they have never built a den at all
• A third of children have never played hopscotch
• One in ten children have never ridden a bike

The research confirms parents’ concerns that children are no longer spending their time playing outdoors. 72 per cent of adults played outside rather than indoors, compared to 40 per cent of children today, with children now at risk of losing out on essential childhood experiences that outdoor play brings. The research marks the launch of Playday, supported by Savlon. To celebrate the national day for play on 3 August 2011, nationwide events are being held across the UK to encourage families to get outdoors and play. Austin Healey,  ex-England rugby star and father of four daughters under the age of ten, says: ‘Encouraging my daughters to
behave like children - exploring, discovering and creating, reminds me of the joys of my childhood and are experiences I want them to enjoy. Hunting around the trees in our local park, learning to ride a bike or just leaving them to make up their own outdoor games is an important part of growing up.” Catherine Prisk, Co-Director of Play England, said: “Playing outside, getting muddy, climbing trees and making daisy chains are simple pleasures that many of today’s children are missing out on. Play - outside and indoors - is essential for children’s health, well-being and happiness now, and is also important for their future development, to build vital life and social skills. It’s important that we overcome the barriers to outdoor play by addressing
parents’ safety concerns, protecting and making the most of outdoor spaces in our communities and acknowledging the pressures on family time. For families, simply building a little time to play in the fresh air every day is a great start.” 7 out of 10 parents feel that taking their children to an outside space to play is a
real treat and children feel the same, with a reported 59 per cent that wish they could play outside in natural places more. Over a third of parents claim their fondest memories of play were making up their own games, proof that outdoor play doesn’t need to be costly or structured. To take the first step, get out and play on Playday. Playday is the national day for play in the UK, a celebration of the child’s right to play and a campaign that highlights the importance of play in children’s lives.

Here are some pictures that I took in the woods on Friday when we were working. They are random snapshots of life in the woods and the work going on in the background, when there are no woodland shenanigans going on, but just the hard background work - of course, not forgetting of course the need to eat deliciously cooked food on the fire. This friday we had roasted courgettes, as well as broadbeans fried in melted butter and sprinkled with herbs and parmesan. We also had the best bread, eggs, and danish chocolate sandwiches. Really, what more could we want, apart from all the glorious sunshine that came with it too! A rather lovely office in the outdoors...

The compost loo again...almost finished

Looking beautiful in the sun!

From behind - with the sink now working

Roasted courgettes for our lunch meeting

The lovely Linda having lunch with us in the woods

Gorgeous italian bread - sweet onion and feta foccacia

The lovely Lou working hard

Meg sleeping lots in the sunshine

Treetops

Unfurling ferns

Interesting ivy

A wonderful day at the woodland fair

We had a wonderful day at the Blackdown Hills Woodland Fair. It was quite full on and all go from 10am until 5pm, but it was worth every minute. We met some wonderful people and even got to catch up with lovely friends and acquaintances and even made some great new friends, too we hope. The children had a great time. We played guess what is in the box and best and most popular game of all, we did 'Nail bashing!'. It never seizes to amaze me how a nail, a tree stump and a hammer will occupy children for hours on end! I have to remember that next time I hear the word 'I'm bored' anywhere in the vicinity of my own house! It was glorious sunshine throughout the day and there were so many other things going on, that we barely had enough time to experience any of the other activities around us. We did however manage to take lots of pictures and we really hope to see many of the people we spoke to today. If you are reading this and you scroll down to see your photo below, please do contact us and I am very happy to send you the originals. If you think I may have taken photos of your children adn they are not published here, then again, please do contact us and I will be very happy to forward originals to you, if you would like them.
We very much look forward to seeing all the people we met today in the woods near Crowcombe sometime soon. Don't forget you can subscribe to an RSS feed or email to the right of this article, or you can contact us directly at the woodland play centre email address and we will add you to our mailing list.
Thank you all so much for a wonderful day, and hope to see you soon. I will leave you with some photos of some lovely visitors and fellow woodland folk...

Nicky and PHil, Learning from the Land.

REady for nail bashing

So much concentration - this was one of 15 photos...

Katie from Tracebridge - Amazing Sourdough bread...
they do delivery and bread making classes too...

Emma from FWAG

The brilliant bat people who will hopefully come
and do some bat detecting in the woods with us soon!

The horse doing the horse logging - from Monmouth,
but will go all over the country to do logging.

Making clay nests and creatures

More nail bashing!

Ahhh... a little tired.

Ready for bashing those nails!

There were a lot of people visiting carrying woods...
it was the woodland fair after all!

Ahhh more nests!

I don't know anyone who looks better in a hat!

Bless!

So rock and roll!

THE cutest baby...only 11th months old and running!

The only visitor wearing a bow all day!

Head of the family!

Gotcha!

Nail bashing competition carries on.

Someone is covered in clay.

End of the day nail bashing!

 So - a good day was had by all and we can't wait for next year!