Bumps, Scrapes, and Climbing: Why We Embrace Risky Play at Preschool
TL;DR: Your child’s safety always comes first. We clear real hazards, kids climb only as high as they can safely manage on their own, and guides teach kids to check for risks themselves. Good risk builds judgment, and you’ll always hear from us if something happens.
When your kiddo tells you about the tree they climbed or the muddy hill they made it down, you might wonder what that looked like up close. Here’s how we keep kids safe while still giving them the kind of challenge that helps them grow.
We Clear the Hazards
Before kids climb, we check for broken branches, loose rocks, and anything slick. The fallen logs, boulders, and muddy hills stay, because kids need real challenges to learn real judgment.
They Climb Their Own Way Up
Kids can climb as high as they can get on their own and still get back down safely, and never higher than a guide can reach. We don’t give boosts. If you can’t get up by yourself, you’re not ready to get down by yourself.
We Ask Instead of Warn
You won’t hear much “be careful!” from us. A guide will usually ask something like, “Where’s your foot going next?” or “Does that rock feel wobbly?” Questions like those get kids thinking about their own bodies.
We Check Before We Go
Anytime we reach a tricky spot on the trail, we stop and look together. At the top of Waterfall Hill, for example, we ask: Is it slick? Muddy? Rocky? Are leaves hiding tree roots? Kids learn to pull to the side when a friend passes, land on their backpack if they slip, and stop to check on a friend who gets hurt and always tell a teacher. They use that same quick hazard check on every log, slope, and climb.
Small Consequences Teach Big Lessons
A slip on a muddy slope teaches a child to slow down next time in a way no reminder can. When someone takes a tumble, we comfort them, clean it up, and let you know what happened.
Why Good Risk Matters
A lot of playgrounds today are padded, low, and built so nothing can go wrong. Good risk isn’t about danger. It’s about a challenge that’s been thought through, where kids can test their limits with a guide close by.
Each time kids do this, they’re learning:
How to size up danger. They practice spotting what’s risky so they can keep themselves safe, on the trail and beyond it.
Resilience. Making it up a tough climb gives them a confidence that praise alone can’t.
Strength and balance. They learn how to move their bodies safely over roots, rocks, and mud.
Problem-solving under pressure. When a child gets stuck halfway up a tree, we don’t lift them down. A guide asks, “What can you hold onto? Where could your foot go?” They learn to stay calm and think it through.
If we took away every possible risk, we’d also take away their chance to learn how to handle themselves. Giving them room to try is how they grow into capable, confident, careful people.
What the Research Says
Norwegian researcher Ellen Sandseter has spent years studying risky play. She found that climbing to heights is the most common kind, and that when kids gradually take on scarier challenges, they work through fear much like therapists help adults overcome anxiety. Her guiding idea is one we share: play should be “as safe as necessary, not as safe as possible.”
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