Experts say that as playgrounds become more sanitized, children are being deprived of the chance to connect with nature and learn to manage risk.
Michael Follett is a children’s activity specialist and is passionate about the importance of mud play.
“It’s so tactile. You can use it as paint. You can crush it in a bowl. You can make a mud pie. You can make cappuccino!” he rejoices.
As a former play worker and founder and director of Opal (Outdoor Play and Learning), which supports schools to improve play opportunities, Follett is a champion of the benefits of outdoor play.
Mud is still not generally accepted
“It’s so important for children’s mental and physical health to have access to green spaces and nature every day, and if the price for that is getting a little dirty, then we should accept that,” he points out.
However, not everyone feels so good about mud. For example, a primary school in North Devon in the UK with a brand new mud play area made headlines after apologizing to parents and carers whose children had gone home covered in mud after torrential rain particularly strong.
The mud play area at Holsworthy Church of England Primary School, complete with a digging hole, was part of a recent refurbishment of the outdoor play area, according to The Guardian.
“We felt that all of our children needed something better at playtime and lunchtime. The (previous) playground was immaculate, but there was nothing they could do. As a school, we have become quite leery of allowing children to take risks. It gets to the point where all the risk is removed and kids don’t learn what risk is and how to manage risk,” says principal Amy Frost.
The playgrounds, increasingly sanitized
Fewer children in the UK are playing in the mud than in the past. Today’s children have less access to outdoor play, and their play time has become more organized, it is more limited, and their spaces are more sanitized.
Helen Dodd, professor of child psychology at the University of Exeter, says: “Reducing the number of children playing in the mud is part of our risk aversion. We want to keep children safe, clean and tidy, and in doing so we prevent them from doing the things that children do naturally.”
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Source: www.descopera.ro
