Re introducing woodland-play in Glyncoch
When you were a kid and you went out to play - what did you enjoy doing?
Try this before reading further:
Close your eyes for a moment and think back to your favourite play memories as a child…
…
Have you done it? No….? Before reading further, just try it! Go on!
OK, now, thinking of your favourite play memory did it by any chance involve any of the following features:
- being out doors?
- taking risks and being a little scared at times?
- inventing your own games / making your own dens
- being without supervision?
Do children today have the chance to enjoy the same thrills that we did at a child? Or are they encouraged not to go wandering too far and to stay within the boundaries of our gardens / streets for fear of what might happen to them if they went further away? As a parent how much freedom do you give your child? These are all very, very difficult questions and no one has the right or wrong answer.
However, to make things a little easier, the Glyncoch Youth and Play workers organised woodland play sessions during the Easter holidays to give our children some of the thrills that we used to enjoy as children. They played in the woodland between Porcher and Lower Garth Avenue making dens and playing on rope swings. ‘It was just fab’ said Donna Morgan the Glycncoch Communities First Youth Worker ‘the children really enjoyed themselves. It was so lovely to see them enjoying the outdoors. This sort of play helps them develop new skills and learn about their natural environment whilst playing’. |
