OPAL: Outdoor Play and Learning
Our Playground:
The ASM Play Landscape is different from a regular playground. That is because it is designed to allow students 100s of items to play with (in a fantastic natural setting) rather than being a playground with a few items to play upon. That difference is grounded in the theory of loose parts which states that “it’s the loose parts in our environment that empower our creativity. Loose parts are materials with no specific set of directions that can be used alone or combined with other materials, therefore can be used in any way that children choose and can be adapted and manipulated in many ways. Loose parts can be natural or synthetic. Loose parts are materials that can be moved, carried, combined, redesigned, lined up, and taken apart and put back together in multiple ways.”
Staff at ASM are trained by OPAL (Outdoor Play and Learning) to offer high-quality play experiences for children. Our program includes planning for and understanding the 16 Play Types and using a wide variety of loose parts to enhance play. (You can view the staff training videos about the 16 Play Types HERE.)
Our students report more enjoyment of school with our OPAL approach. Teachers report less instructional time lost to disputes between children, fewer accidents and greatly improved behavior overall.
Play is not what we do after learning. OPAL is learning time! All students have the right to play.
At ASM we believe that play is a process which is:
1. Freely chosen by the child
2. Directed by the child
3. For the child’s own motivations and reasons
4. Offered and available in all weather conditions
Dressing for All Weather Play
Madrid has different seasons and sometimes the weather is wet and cold. However, we always go out to play in the Lower School. Please make sure your child is dressed for any type of weather and is prepared to go outside. We will only come indoors for recess if it is pouring rain outside.
DON QUIJOTE PARK COMMUNITY RULES
Members of our community are welcome to play in Don Quijote Park after school. However, we have a new set of rules. Please help us by following these rules whenever you are in the park.
