Good Practice On this page you will find examples of good practice. If you would like to contribute please use the contact form. Q: How do we integrate our school behaviour policy into playtime? A: Before automatically transferring the school behaviour policy to the playground, some careful thought needs to be given as to whether this is entirely appropriate and whether it will work for the children and the adults in the playground. Whilst there is of course a need for children to have clear and consistent messages throughout the school day, the basic message that children need is that these are the sorts of acceptable and unacceptable behaviours that adults will react to in the school, and this needs to be re-enforced by the lunchtime staff in a clear and consistent way, always allowing for the fact that sometimes different 'rules' apply when children play. Over-complicated systems which involve writing down negative behaviour in books, awarding credits and cautions, calling in for re-enforcements and then reporting back to the teaching staff after lunch do not necessarily help to keep children playing. Positive attention for children and 'a bit of a chat' where necessary by the lunchtime staff keeps the atmosphere in the playground positive and happy, helping children to play as much as possible. Q: Should we not just cut down the amount of playtime so that children behave better? A: Many schools have indeed reduced the amount of time that children spend on the playground in a bid to reduce the incidents of negative behaviour which they perceive as resulting from the time children spend on the playground. Whilst it is an understandable piece of adult logic, the work done of the Playtime! project shows that schools which take this approach are missing out on a golden opportunity for helping children to get the most out of their school day. Children need time to be able to eat calmly, rest and relax, catch up with their friends and siblings and, most of all, to play. Cutting down the time for all these vital activities means that children do not get the full benefit of the opportunities that a really good playtime gives them and that they return unrefreshed and stressed to the classroom environment. Q: What do children want from their playtimes? A: Whilst it might sound simplistic, children just want to play at playtime. They want to be able to run, shout, burn off energy, act daft, have some 'chill out' time, hang out with their mates, take a few risks and perhaps test a few boundaries whilst they're doing it - all normal childhood stuff. Children get confused and perplexed when this seems to pose a problem for some adults. Adults who shout at children for pulling jumpers over their heads (so that they can play 'ninja turtles') cause children to become irritated - after all, they were only playing! Children who constantly get interrupted in their play to get a 'telling off' for 'sitting in that corner where you can't be seen' become impatient and feel like they've been unfairly treated - how can you have a 'secret club' if you?re always in full view of everybody? And children who are told they can't play with sticks 'in case you take somebody's eye out' resent having their play equipment taken away from them (particularly if the sticks were the only things they had as play equipment) - why would they want to 'take somebody's eye out' anyway? Children want - and need - adults at playtime to support them in their play and to work with them (and often round them) to ensure that playtime is a positive, playful time for everybody. This doesn't mean organising them to an inch of their lives, but it does mean being there, being happy, being approachable, looking after the bigger things that children can't deal with (for example, stray dogs, broken equipment, providing resources, strangers on the playground, behavioural issues which children cannot cope with on their own) and helping children to do what they do best - play.