Eleven things to say instead of 'Be Careful'

[Simona]

This is a wonderful blog by Teacher Tom
Does anyone give children more freedom to try a bit of risky play...or challenging play...or safety play?...or do we stifle children because we are scared of accidents?


Teacher Tom: Eleven Things To Say Instead Of "Be Careful" (http://teachertomsblog.blogspot.co.uk/2015/11/eleven-things-to-say-instead-of-be.html)

[JCrakers]

Love this.. Very good ideas and a couple that made me chuckle.

My favourites are "That's a steep hill. I wonder how you're going to steer that thing." I can see myself yelling that at the park when mindee has just set off and I see them hurtling towards on oncoming tree.

and "Tools are very powerful. They can hurt people." along with the picture of a child with a power drill :laughing:

[lollipop kid]

Love this.. Very good ideas and a couple that made me chuckle.

My favourites are "That's a steep hill. I wonder how you're going to steer that thing." I can see myself yelling that at the park when mindee has just set off and I see them hurtling towards on oncoming tree.

and "Tools are very powerful. They can hurt people." along with the picture of a child with a power drill :laughing:

And there was I about to add those into my planning. (Imagine the Ofsted inspector's face seeing these in the learning journeys!! :laughing:)

LK

[Simona]

The example of the power drill is to be considered carefully....we would not give those to young children whose gross motor skills are still developing....but I would say they may observe their parents using one and being warned of the dangers.
What about Forest Schools where they do teach children about fire?

Does anyone do woodwork with the children using real screwdrivers and real hammers and hand drills? All is done under supervision

I have read a few reactions to this blog elsewhere and all were positive...it is about managing a risk or do we eliminate them all 'just in case' an inspector has a turn seeing them?

[FloraDora]

Be careful because......
This is my vocabulary...I don't see anything wrong with using be careful as long as it is used in a way that doesn't scare off children. The words be careful are used everywhere so the meaning soon gets through to the children .....to slow down and think.... My LO's take part in most activities mentioned in the blog, some with more supervision and guidance than others...before we go out in the garden or down to the nature reserve or to the playground or before we have fires, or use tools...part of my H& S and learning to keep themselves safe is to have a quick talk what should we be careful about? How do we keep ourselves safe? they tell me, it reinforces they know...but it isn't done in an off putting way..it's more we're going to have fun how shall we makes sure we also stay safe...the word THINK comes into our talks. I did have a LO who embraced the outside world with whirlwind enthusiasm and interest ....he however needed to go on the big learning curve of enjoyment + keeping safe as he initially didn't have his own safety button in working order....so that's what I did, I didn't dampen his enthusiasm though, just taught him that we had to sometimes stop and think! Generally though, it's my experience that children have their own working safety button and rarely go beyond what they perceive they want to...if this cuts in really early, then supportive encouragement is needed.
I use woodworking tools, we have lots of safety measures to ensure the children enjoy, progress and explore ....thick carpet between nail and hammer, big nail heads, suitable sized handles, appropriate hardness of wood, with liimited knots , sharp saws....safety goggles....all safety things you would have in a workshop...that they actually see in action when they watch DH making something, so not in a ' be careful, I really don't want you to do this' way. I encourage taking risks...but each child's risk taking is at a different threshold.
It's a good blog and as any good blog, it's not about you following what the blogger says - it's about making you reflect on your practise, perhaps reviewing it in the light of the ideas explored....or not.
My inspector saw my children using knives to cut fruit, saws, under supervision to cut up some wood for a pretend fire, balancing on logs that moved as they walked...making their own see saw to walk up and down with a log and a plank....transporting over sized guttering to make a ball run....she didn't comment negatively or mention safety as she could see, and heard my talk, that we keep safe here whilst having great fun..... Though the seesaw did make me take a deep breath and I moved closer ...as this was something they did new with the logs and planks they had been using for car ramps!

[lollipop kid]

The example of the power drill is to be considered carefully....we would not give those to young children whose gross motor skills are still developing....but I would say they may observe their parents using one and being warned of the dangers.
What about Forest Schools where they do teach children about fire?

Does anyone do woodwork with the children using real screwdrivers and real hammers and hand drills? All is done under supervision

I have read a few reactions to this blog elsewhere and all were positive...it is about managing a risk or do we eliminate them all 'just in case' an inspector has a turn seeing them?

Sadly I think it depends on the individual inspector. (It may be different now, but I had one who objected to the one child tossing MegaBloks into a large cardboard box while standing directly beside it. Apparently, I allowed children to "throw bricks indoors" and I was given an action.)

So as a result of the feedback I received in this one awful inspection, forgive me if I am a little conservative when managing risk in my setting. I understand that such things tend to stay on your file, now, to be 'considered' prior to future inspections; unless this has also changed???

I love the examples in the blog, by the way.

In the past, I have allowed after-school children to climb part way up a tree in the local park without incident - you are perfectly right, FloraDora - I genuinely believe that children have a built-in safety button, and know exactly what they are capable of. It's also wonderful watching one child who is a great climber teach another how to overcome their own uncertainty of trying to climb a little way up the tree, then watch the anxiety turn to joy when they achieve getting up to the same branch as their friend.

I have even had an early years child help me unscrew a toy kitchen that I was taking apart for storage - his Dad is a joiner and the child loved being able to do this. Would I personally dare do these things now? Probably not. Each to their own. :(

All the best,

LK

[Simona]

Sadly I think it depends on the individual inspector. (It may be different now, but I had one who objected to the one child tossing MegaBloks into a large cardboard box while standing directly beside it. Apparently, I allowed children to "throw bricks indoors" and I was given an action.)

So as a result of the feedback I received in this one awful inspection, forgive me if I am a little conservative when managing risk in my setting. I understand that such things tend to stay on your file, now, to be 'considered' prior to future inspections; unless this has also changed???

I love the examples in the blog, by the way.

In the past, I have allowed after-school children to climb part way up a tree in the local park without incident - you are perfectly right, FloraDora - I genuinely believe that children have a built-in safety button, and know exactly what they are capable of. It's also wonderful watching one child who is a great climber teach another how to overcome their own uncertainty of trying to climb a little way up the tree, then watch the anxiety turn to joy when they achieve getting up to the same branch as their friend.

I have even had an early years child help me unscrew a toy kitchen that I was taking apart for storage - his Dad is a joiner and the child loved being able to do this. Would I personally dare do these things now? Probably not. Each to their own. :(

All the best,

LK

Of course each to their own but I feel Flora Dora has understood what I was trying to say...no worries though....I don't think I was trying to ask anyone to change their attitude against risks.

I do read a lot in this forum we do things to either impress the inspector ...or not do things 'just in case' we have the odd inspector ticking the wrong box.....they come around every 4 hours so we may be denying opportunities to children where supervision is all that is needed and a sense of looking and judging risks themselves.

For me it has created an atmosphere of anxiety and one where cms do not feel comfortable in challenging inspectors.
we must do so when their judgement is flawed...the example you gave is enough to make sure we understand how inspectors judge us !

[lollipop kid]

Of course each to their own but I feel Flora Dora has understood what I was trying to say...no worries though....I don't think I was trying to ask anyone to change their attitude against risks.

I do read a lot in this forum we do things to either impress the inspector ...or not do things 'just in case' we have the odd inspector ticking the wrong box.....they come around every 4 hours so we may be denying opportunities to children where supervision is all that is needed and a sense of looking and judging risks themselves.

For me it has created an atmosphere of anxiety and one where cms do not feel comfortable in challenging inspectors.
we must do so when their judgement is flawed...the example you gave is enough to make sure we understand how inspectors judge us !

I challenged every daft thing that my inspector said, so much so that she left without even giving me any grade or feedback. Something I didn't think they were allowed to do. (Yes, I put this in my complaint as well, but again, as it was Tribal inspecting Tribal, you guessed it, I got absolutely nowhere.)

Anyway, onwards and upwards.

:thumbsup:

LK