Risk-taking is a natural part of children’s outdoor play behavior and offers a variety of benefits. The value of risk-taking, however, isn’t always understood or appreciated. The benefits include the development of critical risk assessment skills, improved mental health and an increase in physical activity, social interactions, creativity and resilience. The opportunity for taking risks can also motivate children to be more engaged with the natural environment and thus promote connectedness with nature.

Policies and programs expanding children’s opportunities for independence and self-directed play may  promote their mental health

This paper notes how children’s freedom to engage in activities that involve some degree of risk and personal responsibility have declined considerably over recent years while mental health issues have greatly increased. Research-based evidence is then provided to support the idea that independent and risk-taking activities contribute to children’s immediate and future mental well-being. Policies and programs expanding children’s opportunities for independence and responsibility are encouraged.
Gray, Lancy & Bjorklund, 2023. Decline in independent activity as a cause of decline in children’s mental well-being: Summary of the evidence.
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Risky play may promote children’s social, emotional and cognitive development, along with nature connectedness

Children attending nature-based early childhood programs typically spend the majority of their day outdoors in a nature-rich environment engaged in self-directed play. This literature review found consistent positive links between such programs and growth in self-regulation, social skills, play interaction, nature relatedness and awareness of nature. Risky play was identified as one of the possible pathways to these positive outcomes.
Johnstone, Martin, Cordovil et al. 2022. Nature-based early childhood education and children’s social, emotional and cognitive development: A mixed-methods systematic review.
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The presence of natural features in an environment (such as trees and rocks) and natural materials (such as sticks and stones) that can be manipulated by children (loose parts) often invite risky play. Unfortunately, the way many play and learning environments are designed reflects more of a concern for safety and supervision than children’s need for interaction with the natural world. It’s also unfortunate that some environments in which children live pose real threats to children’s safety. Understanding the difference between risks and hazards can be helpful in planning environments that encourage healthy risk taking while still keeping children safe. A hazard is a feature of the environment that can result in harm. Risk is the chance or likelihood of that harm occurring. There are ways to reduce hazards and manage risk, while still allowing children to engage in risk-taking activities.

Both physical and social factors impact children’s risky play behaviors in impoverished environments

Children (age 3-10) shared their perspectives of their backyards (semi-public small areas) in an impoverished urban community in Poland. Observations and feedback from the children indicated that they often engaged in risky play and were aware of the physical and social context of their backyards. The children were adept at navigating unsafe spaces, yet understood that their playspaces were less desirable than those of their peers in “nicer” environments.
Janik, 2022. Outdoor (anti-)play spaces and places: A qualitative study of Polish large city backyards seen from children’s perspective.
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Topography and other physical features of outdoor playspaces encourage children’s engagement in risky play

Play behavior observations at two different settings showed significant differences in frequency of risk-taking activities: 52% in a naturalized playspace in the U.S. and 16.5% in the outdoor playspaces of eight childcare centers in Canada. Most risk-taking occurred during physical play and in areas with uneven topography. Children in the naturalized area were slightly older than children at the childcare centers. While this age difference may have contributed to the difference in risk-taking, the steep slopes and more natural elements at the naturalized setting may have played a bigger role.
Loebach, Ramsden, Cox  et al. 2023. Running the risk: The social, behavioral and environmental associations with positive risk in children’s play activities in outdoor playspaces.
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Preschoolers engage in significantly more risky play outdoors than indoors

Data from 1,878 two-minute videos of 80 children in Norway showed that most of the children engaged in some form of risky play and that the frequency of risky play was significantly greater outdoors than indoors. There were no significant differences in frequency of risk-taking behaviors between boys and girls, and the frequency increased slightly from age 3 to 6 years of age.
Sandseter, Kleppe & Sando, 2021. The prevalence of risky play in young children’s indoor and outdoor free play.
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Outdoor risky play opportunities in educational settings are influenced by a variety of factors. How teachers perceive play, however, is one of the major determining factors. Many teachers recognize the value of risky play, yet concerns about safety often result in teacher-imposed restrictions on children’s play activities. Initiatives involving the re-training of teachers and collegial mentoring may lead to increased opportunities for children to experience the benefits of risky play in outdoor environments.

Supporting risk-taking in a natural environment encourages independent learning

This theoretical paper draws attention to the learning environment’s role in independent learning and highlights ways in which the Danish forest school approach encourages independence through child-initiated and child-led activities. The forest school learning environment is both a physical space and a pedagogical approach which encourages active learning through meaningful play, experimenting and risk-taking.
Cerino, 2021. The importance of recognising and promoting independence in young children: The role of the environment and the Danish forest school approach.
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Reluctance on the part of teachers limits children’s involvement in risky play at preschools

A survey completed by 58 early childhood teachers in one region of the United States included the Tolerance for Risk in Play Scale (TRiPS), which assesses teachers’ attitudes about risky play. Survey responses, along with interviews, focus group discussions, and observations, revealed limited acceptance of risky play among early childhood teachers and a lack of affordances for risky play in the preschools’ playgrounds. Safety regulations were also identified as barriers to risky play.
LeMasters & Vandermaas-Peeler, 2021. Exploring outdoor play: A mixed-methods study of the quality of preschool play environments and teacher perceptions of risky play.
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Current preschool teachers in Greece are less likely than prospective teachers to encourage outdoor risky play

Results of surveys completed by 100 current and 100 prospective teachers in Greece indicate that the two groups hold differing views about outdoor play in preschool environments. The prospective teachers indicated that they would be more likely than current teachers to encourage risk-taking play and to promote play with natural materials. These findings highlight the need for retraining Greek preschool teachers towards a better utilization of outdoor play and its role in the educational process.
Sakellariou & Banou, 2020. Play within outdoor preschool learning environments of Greece: A comparative study on current and prospective kindergarten educators.
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Collegial mentorship may enable teachers with less outdoor education experience to embrace outdoor risky play as a pedagogical practice

Seventeen elementary teachers in Canada participated in six meetings over a six-month period, discussing their education outdoors practices with researchers. Three main themes emerged from these discussions: (1) teachers finding time and space for unstructured play; (2) teachers recognizing the pedagogical value of risky play; and (3) teachers benefitting from collegial mentorship in developing skills and knowledge to enhance opportunities for outdoor risky play.
Zeni, Schnellert & Brussoni, 2023. “We do it anyway”: Professional identities of teachers who enact risky play as a framework for education outdoors.
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Parents’ perceptions of risk and risk-taking are linked to children’s activity levels, movement competence and willingness to engage in risky play activities. While many parents are more concerned about the potential for physical harm inherent in risky play than the potential benefits, others whose children are enrolled in a forest school program recognize that the benefits far outweigh any risks involved.

How parents view risk-taking is reflected in young children’s risky play behaviors

Observations of nine toddlers (age 1-2) playing in a natural environment in the U.S. showed that they all engaged in risky play activities. Surveys completed by their parents showed greater concern about the potential for physical harm inherent in risky play than the potential benefits. Mothers generally viewed risk-taking as having greater value than fathers. Parents who rated outdoor play activities as more risky tended to have children who exhibited more risk aversion.
Murray & Williams, 2020. Risk-tasking and assessment in toddlers during nature play: The role of family and play context.
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Parents’ perceptions of risk and risk-taking are linked to preschoolers’ activity levels and movement competence

Thirty-five Canadian preschoolers and their parents participated in this study. The preschoolers wore accelerometers during their waking hours over a period of 6 to 9 days and participated in an assessment of their gross motor (physical movement) development. Their parents completed surveys about risk-taking activities for their children. Results showed that more positive attitudes toward risk-taking were associated with higher levels of physical activity and motor skill development.
Stone, Webber, Cawley et al. 2020. Are parental perceptions of risk and attitudes toward risk-taking during play associated with preschoolers’ physical activity and physical literacy?
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Parents in Canada believe that the benefits of a forest school program are greater than any risks involved

The benefits of a forest nature program as identified by 15 parents of enrolled preschool children include increased time outdoors, play confidence, risk-taking opportunities, improved wellness and environmental stewardship. They indicated that the benefits far outweighed any risks involved and were concerned about the lack of educational programs offering outdoor time in natural settings.
Zimanyi & Rossovska, 2020. Who is John the snail and when can we meet him?: Parent perspectives on children’s engagement in a forest nature program.
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There has been growing concern in recent years about an emphasis on safety and overprotective supervision of children’s play resulting in a reduction of children’s access to unstructured, challenging physical play, especially in outdoor environments. This risk-aversive approach has negative implications for children’s health and development. Ableism may magnify this concern for children with differing abilities. Another concern relates to the active prevention of infants and toddlers from interacting with the natural environment.

Ableism is a form of discrimination which tends to limit healthy risk-taking for individuals with a sight impairment

Thirty-one people with sight impairments in the UK participated in individual interviews about their nature-related experiences through the life course. Almost all of the participants indicated that they experienced feelings of freedom with nonhuman nature but that these freedoms were often denied due to ableist attitudes.
Bell, 2019. Experiencing nature with sight impairment: Seeking freedom from ableism.
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Dominant contemporary narratives tend to exclude infants and toddlers from the outdoors

A systematic search of the literature revealed a sparsity of research on infants and toddlers outdoors. While the search was international in scope and no time limit was placed on date of publication, only 21 papers were identified. Risky play emerged as one of the identified themes, but the focus for babies was on risk management versus appropriate risk-taking. The practitioners’ role as described in the literature included active prevention of children’s engagement with the outdoor environment.
Kemp & Josephidou, 2021. Babies and toddlers outdoors: A narrative review of the literature on provision for under twos in ECEC settings.
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