At St. Aidan's, we understand the value of children playing. Play is crucial for a child's growth, giving them the confidence they need to explore, solve issues, and interact with others. Children gain knowledge by organising their own play and participating in play that is supervised by adults.

What is play?

Play is the universal language of childhood. It brings together children of diverse backgrounds, teaching them how to engage and interact with the world. - Play Scotland

Play is an essential component of a child's life. It is not a want, but a need. The importance of play is so huge, that it has even been declared by the United Nations as a child's right.

“Play is a very misused adult word. To a child it is a way of life. To an adult it often means unimportant recreational things we do when we are not working”

Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Types of Play

There are 16 types of play that children engage in, as recognised by theorist Bob Hughes in Playtypes: Speculations and Possibilities.

 

Our new look playtimes are amazing, look how much fun everyone is having!

Juniors playing

Another fantastic playtime!

Our pupils having fun during our ALWAYS playtime today!

Den building, dodgeball, dress up, scooters, tennis, tracks, construction, mark making, and gardening. This is how we ALWAYS play.

Happy Friday!

Reception having fun on the BIG playground.

The infants enjoying their ALWAYS play this morning.

Lots of fun in the sun this lunchtime!

Lots of fun in the autumn sunshine at lunchtime today.

Frosty but fun!

The infants having fun in the snow