I’m sure that many of you remember your playtimes well – much more than your maths lessons or what happened in the month of March in Year 5. If you consider children are at school for six hours or more on a school day, then the hour or 75 minutes allocated to lunch and playtimes is a significant proportion of the day. Getting this time right for our children really matters.

My personal memories are strongest from my middle school years (P5-S1). The school I attended was built in Victorian times and had loads of asphalt along with a large playing field. There were no playground resources provided by the school and no playground markings. I don’t remember any bullying or fighting. Instead we self-entertained using stuff from home that we brought to school and resulting in an ongoing series of crazes that kept us waiting in excitement for the next playtime or lunch time. This included:

• Skipping: both using small ropes for individual and pairs and big ropes for group skipping. Whilst I never owned a big rope, this was my favourite craze of all. I loved the social as well as the physical element along with the skipping rhymes.
• Elastic bands: this involved looping together loads of elastic bands to make one large loop of elastic that was then put around two children’s ankles, moving up to knees and higher. The games involved jumping on and off the elastic.
• Playing with two balls and a wall: we never got into juggling or circus skills but one of my other favourite crazes was throwing two tennis balls (or similar) against a wall, singing rhymes as we did so that challenged us to make specific moves. This would sometimes morph into putting each ball into a sock and hitting this off the walls.
• String games: using sting to make cat’s cradle and other patterns.
• Clapping games with a partner, singing songs as we played them.

The crazes went on for several weeks at a time. If you didn’t like one, you just tended to walk, run or play with others. For this we delved into our knowledge of traditional games, such as Red Letter, Stampede or – before it would be banned – British Bulldogs. We learned these games from other children. They were passed down orally and were simply part of everyday childhood.

So times change and with this, has playgrounds and playtimes. Many of these traditional forms of self-entertainment and play have been forgotten or lost. When returning to school, be this at the start of a new school year or post lockdown, introducing playground games can be really helpful as a way of supporting children to enjoy, socialise and have fun at playtimes. Whilst some schools advocate “craze of the week” and playground supervisors teaching games during playtime, my preference is to do this during class time as part of PE or PHSE. It is easy to finish up 10 mins early to head outside or to stay outside after break or lunch time to play a quick game. There are several reasons for this:

• It keeps playtimes as a time where children choose what to do and when – that they learn to instigate games and not rely on adults to initiate and supervise. The self-regulation needed is an important life skill.
• That children learn how to manage the spaces where they play. Whilst you can micro-zone your playground using signs, children can learn a lot by working out that some places work better than others for different sorts of games. They may have to negotiate to make space for their activity – or learn the consequences of invading another group’s space!
• Being outside just before or after a playtime can help some children make the transition between the playground and the classroom. Often the issues occur at transition times rather than during breaks themselves.
• Children will adapt the games and personalise them. Doing this away from an adult can be really important for some children who need this ownership of a game. However, as a game is being learned, a teacher can draw children’s attention to similar games played in other countries, so that children can learn about the lives of children in other cultures. It can be a great context for global citizenship lessons and working with children from other countries to learn from each other.
• You can invite parents and grandparents to share their childhood games and develop some shared time to laugh and learn together in a practical way outside. This can even become a whole school event or project.
• For any teacher not used to working outside with their class, it is a gentle way into the process. Games are usually quick and easy to set up. If necessary, the rules can be explained inside prior to heading out, and then only a quick recall is required outside.
• Teachers can learn games and then adapt to introduce a concept or idea. In the photo, the educators are being taught a game Under the Wings of a Hawk that is popular in Skogsmulle sessions with children. It’s a variation on Farmer, Farmer May We Cross Your Golden River.

Back in June, the book 101 Playground Games by Therese Hoyle has undergone a second edition. This book is a useful starting point for many playground games and has different sections such as skipping games and rhymes, chasing and catching games, tag games and so on. The introduction is a useful and well-researched summary of the value of play and why children need to play. So the context for the book is clear: this is about offering children more ways of playing.

Finally, as the summer is upon us, and many Scottish schools are already on holiday, teaching your own children some great games to play outside that you remember can be a gift that goes with them from generation to generation without the need for bought resources but using what’s around. Now there’s a lovely thought 🙂