The soft play room at Frederick Holmes School is not only a place for great fun; it is a safe and secure environment where pupils and students can develop their physical, communication and problem-solving skills as they take part in activities such as sitting, rolling, crawling, climbing, sliding and reaching.
Research shows that all children, and especially those with special and profound needs, need to be provided with play opportunities to enable them to learn about themselves and about the world around them. By taking the learning out of the classroom and into the soft play room, the teacher can be more creative in planning a range of activities, such as acting out stories and poems, moving like animals in the jungle or going on a bear hunt. Through the use of songs, rhymes, stories and music pupils and students learn to work together, to tolerate and cooperate with each other as they work through their tasks together, interacting and taking turns with their friends and staff.
Many of the pupils and students use the soft play room to follow a physical management plan, devised by the physiotherapist, which aims to promote good movement and independence. They are also encouraged through songs and games to use their whole bodies whilst playing. They can develop their fine and gross motor co-ordination, discover what their body can do and practice new ideas, concepts and skills.
