More than 100 kindy teachers trained in tree climbing

The workshop isn't compulsory for teachers but needed to supervise kids tree climbing. Photo / File

Teachers at more than 100 Auckland kindergartens must complete a course in tree climbing before they can supervise kids scaling branches.

Auckland Kindergarten Association (AKA) is running a tree climbing workshop for their kindergartens and daycare centres with "climbable trees in the playground", and for those who frequently go on excursions to parks with climbing trees.

Since the programme's 2016 start, 120 kindy and early childhood teachers have been trained in the course.

AKA Roskill South Kindergarten head teacher Karen Ramsay said the course for teachers was 90 minutes-long and involved discussions "unpacking the value of tree climbing".

"We begin with exploring why we should provide the opportunity for children to climb trees, because we view this as a really rich and meaningful experience.

"We look at why providing the opportunity for risk and challenge that is age-appropriate in the early years is important for children's learning."

Ramsay said they also examined risks associated with climbing.

"We have a powerpoint with lots of pictures on it, but also we go out into a reserve and look at trees as well... They're doing a site assessment of the tree and just thinking about the condition of the tree."

Roskill South Kindergarten kids spent most afternoons supervised at a reserve behind the kindy with climbable trees, she said.

"I get really good feedback from teachers who find discussing the value of tree climbing and unpacking it really beneficial."

An AKA spokeswoman added that the workshops were introduced at a time when there was considerable media attention around tree climbing in schools and the hazards falling trees were posing.

Among incidents was a WorkSafe prosecution after four preschoolers were injured by a large tree that toppled at Newmarket's Discovery Educare daycare in November 2016.

The spokeswoman said managing the risks of tree climbing was in line with their internal Health and Safety policies, which in turn aligned with their responsibilities under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015.

The workshop wasn't compulsory for teachers, but needed to supervise kids tree climbing.

A WorkSafe spokesperson said AKA's tree climbing workshop wasn't a WorkSafe initiative, but acknowledged it was important for kindies and schools to examine risks trees might pose on their grounds.

"The location, shape, height and state that a tree takes could be considerations of a school's risk assessment."

The organisation said the current health and safety legislation wasn't prescriptive and it was over to the kindergarten to determine how they addressed risks they identified.

Chief executive of New Zealand Kindergartens Inc Clare Wells said the Herald's call to her was the first she'd heard of AKA's workshop.

"I know teachers obviously talk about children and risk-taking generally as part of the curriculum, but not specifically [tree climbing]."