Adventurous play in nature: acting now and differently in schools

We all want thriving education systems where students, teachers, and communities flourish. Despite best intentions, this is not the case with education systems around the world facing great challenge. Since 2010, in most countries, educational performance and wellbeing has been in decline while school reforms and per capita spending on education have increased. Moreover, there is a persistent failure of education systems to provide adequate education for all students seeing systemic inequity widen. According to these indicators, education systems are struggling globally, and nationally in Australia. Against this backdrop, over the last three generations, children’s play has changed. In the past, children played with freedom, independence, and agency. Play today is more structured, orchestrated, and controlled by adults. Adventurous and risky play has become endangered, with negative consequences. It is time to reclaim play as the pedagogy of choice for children in the early years of school. In this chapter, we address myths such as the disconnect between play and learning, outline emerging trends in outdoor learning, and show how introducing adventurous nature play into schools may help address the challenges facing education today.