Publication Date

5-2025

Date of Final Oral Examination (Defense)

2-28-2025

Type of Culminating Activity

Dissertation

Degree Title

Doctor of Education in Curriculum and Instruction

Department

Special and Early Childhood Education

Supervisory Committee Chair

Hannah Carter, Ph.D.

Supervisory Committee Member

Deb Carter, Ph.D.

Supervisory Committee Member

Juli Pool, Ph.D.

Abstract

Young children’s outdoor risky play is an intriguing and challenging phenomenon in early childhood care and education settings (ECCE). While recent research on risky play conveys the numerous developmental benefits, types of play children engage in, environmental affordances, and approaches to risk assessment, minimal research includes children’s perspectives about their risky play experiences. This phenomenological case study explores preschool children’s experience and what they feel and wonder about during risky play in a setting where risky play is effectively supported. Data were collected using interactive observation and interviews and analyzed using thematic analysis. Children described feeling “good” and “scared” during risky play, and had feelings related to self-awareness, receptiveness, and togetherness. Their wonderings during risky play were connected to safety, risk, and inquiry. Poetic inquiry was used to honor the need for children’s voices in this research, amplify their words, and convey the essence of their risky play experience. These findings highlight the importance of including young children’s voices in research to inform ECCE teaching practices and the growing child-centered field of risky play pedagogy. Risky play provides invaluable opportunities for children to play with emotions, curiosity, and risk. Educators can reinforce the value of children’s risky play by adopting a strong image of the child, creating a culture of emotional awareness and risk-taking, and providing opportunities for risky play in outdoor environments.

DOI

https://doi.org/10.18122/td.2354.boisestate

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