Risk Taking

Whilst it is recognised that children need adventure and risk in their play, playworkers often struggle with how to justify the risk-taking opportunities provided for their children. It is also often forgotten that risk-taking is more than just the physical, but encompasses emotional and mental risk-taking as well.

The risks we take when working with children - Nicole Talarico

When children and young people are regarded as citizens they will be recognised as key stakeholders of their communities and a rights-based lens will be utilised to hear their thinking. We need a call to action to challenge the narrative of playworkers' motivation. As adults, we need to take risks in our thinking to influence how we action our role to impact the settings we work in.

TIME 9:30 - 10:30 LENGTH 1 hour
BY ZOOM

Managing risks in virtual reality (VR) scenarios - Professor Ellen Beate Hansen Sandseter and Lise Storli

Would you like to try managing risks in VR scenarios? The research project ViRMa (Virtual risk management) explores children's risk managements skills through innovative methods such as VR data, eye-tracking and motion capture. These data are then analysed in combination with data on children's risk experiences (risky play, activities, parenting style etc.). In this session, you will be able to try the VR scenarios included in this data collection and see how you manage the risks yourself.

TIME: 11:15 - 12:45 LENGTH: 1 hour 30 minutes

Risk Taking and Culture - Maya Lan

This session will look into the influences culture has on risk taking. We will look at three very different cultures, who have widely different attitudes towards seeing children climbing up tall trees, the factors that are influencing their attitudes to this subject area and how I worked alongside them to free the children and the adults- but only after I jumped head first into the freezing pacific ocean myself!

TIME: 13:00 - 14:30 LENGTH: 1 hour 30 minutes

Would you risk it for a biscuit? The mace and other stories - Simon Rix
We are all aware of the evidence and discussion around risk, the benefits of risk taking in play and risk management.  Sometimes that makes us nervous - we are being asked to take risks.  How do we approach that?  This discussion will hope to explore how the real life implications in playwork practice.

TIME 16:00 - 17:00 LENGTH 1 hour