Risk and our pedagogical relation to children : on the playground and beyond / Stephen J. Smith.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Smith, Stephen J., 1954-

Series:

SUNY series, early childhood education

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Risk-taking (Psychology) in children.

Teaching.

Active learning.

Knowledge, Sociology of.

Playgrounds.

Play.

Children--Health and hygiene.

Children.

Physical Description:

xi, 220 pages ; 24 cm.

Place of Publication:

Albany, NY : State University of New York Press, [1998]

Summary:

In this book, Stephen Smith shows how parents and educators can become aware of the positive value of risk in children's lives and how they can be challenged to take risks that are worth their while. This text is a "how so" much more than a "how to" book. It shows by evocative example and provocative questions how adults can help children mature with confidence and a strong sense of physical competence. The analysis shows the place, silence, atmosphere, challenge, encounter, practice, and possibility of risk taking. It consistently and conscientiously draws the reader's attention to a careful, solicitous manner of being with children.

Contents:

Part I. Locating a Pedagogy of Risk

Venturing Onto the Playground

Redefining Risk

Pedagogical Considerations

Part II. An Awareness of Risk

2. The Place of Risk 35

The Safety of the Playground

The Supervision of Children

The Observation of Children

Risky Situations

3. The Silence of Risk 57

An Approach of Silence

A Silent Procedure

The Unspoken Ground

A Silent Trust

Part III. A Responsiveness to Risk

4. The Atmosphere of Risk 81

The Texture of Risk

Modes of Presence

Pedagogical Presence

Playground Atmosphere

5. The Challenge of Risk 101

The Dare

Encouragement

Ways Out

Limits of Challenge

6. The Encounter with Risk 119

Apprehension

Becoming Mindful

Sensing Danger

Letting Go

Part IV. The Educational Significance of Risk

7. The Practice of Risk 143

Tricks

Repetition

Practice

Being in Practice

8. The Possibility of Risk 161

The Playing Field

Beyond the Playground

Towards a Curriculum

9. Practical Insights 175

Practical Ways of Acting

Practical Ways of Being.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 199-213) and index.

ISBN:

0791435938

0791435946

OCLC:

36909332