Opal, Thrive and Forest School

Opal

At Manor Primary School, we value play as an integral part of children’s learning and social and emotional development.

As well as learning through good teaching, 20% of children’s time in school is playtime. That is the equivalent of 1.4 years of primary school life. We want that to be as educational, healthy and enjoyable as possible.

Play is defined as any freely chosen activity which a child finds satisfying and creative. It can be done alone or with others. It provides learning opportunities for emotion, social interactions, problem solving, being creative, achieving and coping with failure, communication and negotiating skills.

At Manor Primary School, we believe in providing a rich play setting; ensuring all children have access to a stimulating environment that offers the opportunity to explore through play. In order for this to happen, adults at school will understand and follow the following play work principles of:

• Supporting play from start to finish
• Helping to create and support the creation of enriched play spaces for all
• Thinking about what they are doing and keep up to date with new ideas
• Asking themselves:
  • ‘What am I doing?
  • How do I impact the play space?
  • How do the children impact me?’
• Keeping their distance unless asked to play or are needed to support play. Risk is important for young people’s development
• Understanding that it is the children who oversee the play and that everyone has the right to play

Evidence shows that along with the benefits previously mentioned, a reduction in first aid and behaviour incidents during playtimes is directly linked to effective provision.

Allowing children the freedom and opportunities to be creative outside not only stimulates them whilst partaking in these activities, it can increase their ability to be able to concentrate. Many families will not have a garden, for example, so it is vital that we provide the best opportunities for play possible.

Thrive

Using a whole school approach, each teacher carries out a whole class Thrive assessment in terms 1, 3 and 6. The results of which are used to inform class HRE lessons.

If a child is identified as needing additional support, they are then either provided with a Thrive group or individual provision for 8 weeks with Thrive action plans generated. This details strategies and activities to support the child’s development and are shared with teachers. The children’s achievements are reviewed during the 8 weeks of provision and determine if further Thrive support is required. Parents are notified of their child's participation and invited to meet with Thrive practitioners to share plans and discuss the support offered to their child.

Thrive is a systematic approach to the early identification of emotional developmental needs in children and young people so that differentiated provision can be put in place quickly by the adults working most closely with the young child or young person. We use Thrive because addressing emotional developmental needs builds resilience and resourcefulness, decreases the risk of mental illness, reinvigorates the learning provision and helps those children who are at risk of underachieving or exclusion stay at school and re-engage with learning. It is preventative, reparative and pragmatic.

Thrive is adapted for the individual and by supporting their own personal emotional development: this is key to its success. This personalisation is achieved through individual, group and class action plans.

Forest School

We are lucky enough to have our own Forest School site here at Manor Primary School with every class having a one-hour session of Forest School a week with a trained Forest School worker. Forest School is child led learning in an outdoor setting. The learning taking place is individual to them; each child can be absorbed in what they find interesting.

Through regular outdoor learning experiences, children are given the opportunities to learn and achieve. At Forest School, children’s natural curiosity is aroused allowing them to experiment and ask questions. These in turn develop self-esteem, confidence, a positive attitude to learning, social skills and teamwork. Regular attendance at Forest School provides opportunities for everyone to learn and achieve. Recent research shows improved outcomes for children in the following areas:

• Confidence and Self Esteem - Children have the freedom, time and space to learn, grow and demonstrate their skills.
• Social Skills - Children develop an increased awareness of the consequences of their actions and show a better ability to work cooperatively with others.
• Motivation and concentration - Children show a keenness to participate in play activities and to explore their surroundings plus an increased ability to focus on specific tasks for longer periods of time.
• Physical skills - Both gross and fine motor skills are honed by making structures, climbing, running and exploring freely.
• Knowledge and Understanding - Increased respect is shown for the environment and the natural surroundings together with improved observational skills. Visiting the setting throughout the year gives them the opportunity to note changes and become aware of seasonal differences.

Forest school is accessible to all children. The learning taking place is unique to each child. Observation by the adults present allows them to see what stage of learning each child is at. The adult role is then to facilitate and move that child’s learning on through questioning.