The Start of our OPAL Journey June 2021
Exciting playtimes are here!
In 2021, we signed up to start an exciting new programme in conjunction with Outdoor Play And Learning (OPAL) to make our play times even better.
The vision is that every child in every school has an amazing hour of high quality play every day – with no exceptions. There are many proven benefits for schools which carry out the OPAL Programme. They usually include: more enjoyment of school, less teaching time lost to disputes between children, fewer accidents and greatly improved behaviour.
What is OPAL?
OPAL has won the best active schools’ programme in Europe award and been cited in two Parliamentary Reports as outstanding practice. OPAL is working closely with Sport England to promote more active childhoods. Through the OPAL programme, we are hoping to improve opportunities for physical activity, socialisation, co-operation, coordination, resilience, creativity, imagination and enjoyment through improved play in our school.
OPAL is based on the idea that as well as learning through good teaching, your children also learn when they play, and as 20% of their time in school is playtime, we want to make sure that this amount of time (equivalent to 1.4 years of primary school) is as good as possible.
We strongly believe that: "Play is freely chosen, personally directed, intrinsically motivated behaviour that actively engages the child. Play can be fun or serious. Through play children explore social, material and imaginary worlds and their relationship with them, elaborating all the while a flexible range of responses to the challenges they encounter. By playing, children learn and develop as individuals, and as members of the community" (Play Council 2001).
The Year 1 children enjoying the launch of our new playtime project.
“I enjoyed the sand and water — you can use tools, and it's fun!”
"I enjoyed playing in the sand and in the water I was swimming it around to make waves"
“I liked playing with the suitcase and the fabric, I pretended I went to Mexico”
“Me and my friends were pushing the box and were taking turns to push someone inside”
“My playtime was good as my friend and I shared the digger in the sand”
“You can make cardboard boxes into a boat”
Reception enjoying the new playtimes.
“Me and my friends made a sandcastle”
“You can play with the cardboard boxes and make a house!”
“I was playing in the kitchen with the saucepans and I saw a spider crawling around, but it didn't scare me”
Year 2 fun at playtime!
“I was in the sand, I made a tall tower with the kitchen stuff and I made a drink for you”
“When you're playing with the kitchen it makes it fun because you can play lots of different games!”
