For years, the term “risky play” has been a challenging concept to sell in early childhood education. It conjures images of liability waivers, accident reports, and worried parents. We hear “risky” and we immediately think of the things we’re supposed to eliminate: hazards.
But what if we shift our perspective? What if “risky play” isn’t an act of carelessness, but an essential form of cognitive development? As Early Childhood Educators, we know that a child’s deepest learning happens during play. It’s time to stop seeing risky play as a threat to safety and start seeing it as the raw material needed to build capability, confidence, and internal control.
The fundamental goal of providing opportunities for risky play isn’t the action itself—it’s the development of a lifelong, critical skill: The ability to risk assess.
To become strong advocates for this type of nature play, we must first recognize the difference between a risk assessment and a hazard. This clear boundary guides all professional decisions made during outdoor programming.
A hazard is a potential source of harm that a child cannot see, anticipate, or judge. It’s typically unseen, unpredictable, and non-negotiable. Our job is to eliminate hazards. As ECEs, our fundamental responsibility is to ensure the environment is free of hazards.
Risk assessment is a challenge that a child can see, assess, and choose to engage with. The risk is visible, the potential consequences are predictable, and the child can exert control over the situation. Our job is to facilitate the risk. We provide the environment and time for children to practice the action of risk-taking, allowing them to develop the skill of assessment.
When we discuss “risk assessment,” we advocate for the thoughtful provision of acceptable risks, rather than tolerating hidden hazards.
Ellen Sandseter often categorizes ‘risky play’ into types that children are inherently drawn to. These actions are not performed thoughtlessly; they are the child’s intuitive attempts to gauge their own abilities and the limits of their environment.
These actions include:
- Play with Great Heights: Climbing trees, wall’s, or tall structures.
- Play with High Speed: Swinging very high, sliding down steep hills, or riding bicycles at top speed.
- Play with Dangerous (Real) Tools: Using real hammers, saws, or knives (with close supervision and instruction).
- Play near Dangerous Elements: Playing near open water, fire, or on slippery ice.
- Rough-and-Tumble Play: Wrestling, play fighting, and chasing games.
- Disappearing/Getting Lost Play: Hiding completely or exploring further away from the leading group.
Each of these actions serves as a training ground for the brain. The child isn’t just seeking adrenaline; they are gathering data. The act of climbing high, for example, is the child asking themselves, “How strong am I? How far is too far? Can my body do this?”
This is why constantly intervening with “Be careful!” is so counterproductive. Every time an adult removes the ability for a child to risk assess, we remove the opportunity for the child to conduct their own vital research. Our mission at Bienenstock Natural Playgrounds is to provide risk assessment, as well as the 6 Elements of Play listed above, in all of our built environments.
The ultimate goal of risky play is to develop internal risk assessment—a foundational cognitive skill and a key component of Executive Function. (Executive Function refers to the mental skills that help us get things done, and it is crucial for later academic and social success.)
If children are always on a perfectly flat, rubberized surface with a hovering adult ready to catch them, they never develop this internal sense of balance. Instead, they learn to rely on the adult (an external regulator) for safety cues, which makes them less confident and ultimately less safe in unstructured situations later in life.
The child who has spent years risk assessing physically is far better equipped to manage the complexity of social risks, academic challenges, and emotional risks than the child who was always told to “come down.”
As ECEs, our role moves from constantly saying “No” to strategically asking key questions:
- “What’s your plan to get down?”
- “Is that branch strong enough to hold you?”
- “Where should you put your foot next?”
These questions don’t just prompt the child to think—they show the child that we trust their competence to figure it out. This trust is the fuel for confidence.
Let’s redefine “risky play.” It’s not the goal; it’s the process required to risk assess. By honouring a child’s need to test their limits, we facilitate the development of that essential cognitive architecture, ensuring our children leave us not just safe, but competent.
