ExchangeEveryDay Past Issues

I had the opportunity to visit Beacon Rise in England, a school where I was able to work with Michael Follet’s OPAL Program. Children are provided with approximately one hour of playtime (recess) every day, rain or shine. Children have movable parts to work with; you may see them putting some of these parts away near the end of the video.

What impressed me most about the program is this: children may go wherever they want on the playground; there are no gates to separate the ages. It becomes a family playtime, where siblings and friends, whatever their ages, can hang out together, play together.

Notice their Wellies; not shown in the video are sheds, like lean-tos, full of Wellies, one pair for each child. The children can place their school shoes on shelves, then take out their Wellies to play and get messy. The school invested in this so that children can play with ease, and not worry about getting their shoes dirty or bringing dirt and mud back into the school.

The adult monitors have backpacks of first-aid supplies available if necessary. Children do not need to leave the playground to get a bandage or first-aid ointment. Essential supplies are immediately available.

This school is addressing the whole child’s learning needs. When children go back into the classroom, they are ready to learn. Their needs are met; they are respected learners. They are allowed to use their bodies freely, using their curiosity to play with nature as their friend.

We can do this in America. Children have the right to play and be able to take risks, like inching over the poles shown in the video. There were three poles, differing in size, width and distance from the ground. Children had a choice in choosing to go across or not, as well as which pole to go across and which challenge they were willing to try.

It is an amazing school. The funny thing is these children think this is the norm, what every child everywhere has, with a chance to play like this every day. I say, if children worldwide have these opportunities, learning will flourish.

If children eat healthy, have play and risk opportunities surrounded by respect from the adults who care for them, learning and academics will follow.

When I observed at Beacon Rise, I actually teared up with a happy joy for these children and then a sad feeling came over me for all the children who do not have opportunities like these in their school. We can change this. This is the future we can leave for our children.

And in response to providing OPAL in Urban schools, I had the opportunity to work
along side Michael in doing just that last fall. He will be happy to share with you.

Lovely. BUT can't any educator make this happen in such a lush, natural, spacious environment? What are we to do in densely populated urban areas with a minimum amount of access to outdoor space? Will our children never reach their full potential because they don't have access to this? OPAL - why don't you adopt some Urban Schools and see what magic you can make? That would be a real achievement.

This playground appears to offer to children now, that which many of us experienced in an unstructured way. Risk-taking, problem-solving, problem-solving - a yes, let's try it! way to spend time LEARNING with joy. Thank you for highlighting this. The values of the adults (who were not seen here), shine through the children's play.

Very enthralling to actully seeing children outside and enloying learning in the environs.