playground equipment

Playground equipment -Blend Nature into School Playgrounds to Reduce Stress, Improve Attention School playgrounds that feature natural habitats and trees do more than just provide a unique outdoor adventure as researchers discover the environment can reduce children’s stress and inattention. University of Colorado Boulder researchers also found that working on class assignments or gardening in such settings also provide stress-reducing benefits for youth. The study, as published in the journal Health & Place, is one of the first of its kind to focus on the relationship between student access to green settings and stress. “Many schools already offer stress management programs, but they’re about teaching individuals how to deal with stress instead of creating stress-reducing environments,” said Louise Chawla, lead author of the study. “Schools are where children spend a major part of their life hours, so it’s an important place to look at for integrating daily contact with...

Playground equipment -This Is The Physics Lesson Of The Future, And It Looks Insanely Fun LOCAL PROJECTS TEAMS UP WITH THE NEW YORK HALL OF SCIENCE TO BUILD AN APP THAT REVEALS THE PHYSICS OF THE PLAYGROUND. On a breezy spring afternoon at the New York Hall of Science in Queens, designer Jake Barton is watching a pair of middle schoolers chuck an iPod across a playground while another kid films the scene with an iPad. This is the physics lesson of the future, and it looks like a blast. Barton’s media design firm, Local Projects, has spent the past two years working with SciPlay, a research center launched by the New York Hall of Science in 2010, to use play to help kids learn scientific concepts. Local Projects is designing a suite of apps for SciPlay to leverage the way kids naturally play to create a social, engaging education platform that can fit in withCommon Core principles for middle school math and science. The as-of-yet-unnamed SciPlay app which Barton and his team are...

Playground equipment -Inclusive Playgrounds - Then and Now Last week, I went on a road trip with my daughter through the Midwest visiting college campuses. Along the way we also visited different playgrounds in Wisconsin, Illinois, Ohio, Michigan, Missouri, and Indiana. We were busy. When we got to Michigan, I realized that I had not been there for 10 years. The last time I was in Michigan, I was working on the Able to Play project (ATP). ATP was a project of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation in honor of their 75th anniversary. They contracted with Boundless Playgrounds(BP) to create approximately 23 inclusive play spaces. Boundless Playgrounds sub-contracted the creation of indoor play spaces to the Center for Creative Play of which I was at the time the Executive Director. I spent much time in Michigan over the years of 2003-2005. We did training, worked with specific communities on community development and fundraising, and designed interesting play spaces. Boundless Playgrounds...

Playground equipment -What makes a great playground? It’s all about what you can do Delving into what may be the most intransigent subject in the play industry, I decided to investigate public opinion on what truly makes a great playground. Rather than rely solely on industry or education based opinions, I also took the question to the public, asking on several social media outlets, at local playgrounds around the area, and at non-play related city events like our local farmer’s market, as well as on kid’s forums, mommy blogs, parent review sites, and other online resources. The results were somewhat surprising, although what wasn’t surprising was that the answers varied greatly. There was, however, a very clear common theme: A great playground is all about what you can DO there. Industry members tended to answer closely related to their own scope of experience and expertise. “It should feature lots of trees and nothing manmade,” stated most of the naturalists. “It should be sa...

Playground equipment -Key Considerations When Building a Splash Pad They're bubbling up from Texas to Minnesota and from coast to coast as complements to traditional dry playgrounds and existing pools, as well as stand-alone aquatics amenities replacing traditional pools altogether. For many municipalities, both urban and suburban, splash pads offer a simpler, more affordable aquatics recreation alternative. With little or no standing water (and thus no lifeguard staffing requirements), but a wide range of water-play options, splash pads represent a natural evolution of the backyard sprinkler cool-down concept. "The nice thing about splash pads in open parks is they're very cross-generational," says Ron Romens, owner and president of Commercial Recreation Specialists in Verona, Wis. "They represent a space where parents and grandparents can bring kids. The kids can play, and the moms have a cup of coffee. They don't have to be right next to the kids in...

Playground equipment -Using Super Powers to Design a Playspace As we discussed in our last column, Laura Richardson’s insightful The Periodic Table of 21st Century Play poster can a powerful tool in the hands of designers and communities when they seek to create truly human and engaging places that support play. As an illustration of how this can work, I will use Laura’s 11 categories, which she refers to as the super powers of play, and create a virtual playground. 1. See [See>See Ourselves See>Observe>Visualize>Imagine] The “see” element in our virtual playground will be a “fun” mirror. These can be done in stainless steel for durability. To make them playful we will use a thin sheet and back it up with flexible plastic. There will be a moveable “bulge” placed behind the sheet so the children can make a wavy surface and create a distorted reflection. 2. Manipulate [Manipulate>Build>Deconstruct>Remix>Hack] This is the easiest element to add to our...

Playground equipment -The Complicated Issue of Surfacing You cannot even begin to design an inclusive playground if you have not dealt with that most basic concept of ensuring that everyone can access your space. The number one barrier to a playground is surfacing. When I was traveling this summer, I saw many instances of non-maintained surfacing that impacted not only the accessibility of the playground, but also the safety. Surfacing selection is complicated. It is a huge decision that will dramatically impact the budget. Too many groups make their decision based only on initial cost, which may or may not be the best decision for that particular playground. I strongly encourage each playground owner/operator or community group that is working on a playground to spend a significant amount of time and research before making a surfacing decision. There are multiple factors you will need to be aware of as you proceed. To start with there is not just one law that you need to follo...

Playground equipment -Play really can start from the ground up! I’m always surprised, when talking to recreation managers and buyers about surfacing, to hear them say, “it’s expensive, and doesn't really add any play or fun to the site, but it’s something we have to do.” There’s good news; surfacing can actually be very playful, and new technology and formulations are adding to that ability. Playground surfacing has come a long way from the “afterthought” of the early 20th century when it was primarily made of sand, screened cinders, clay, or a combination of the above, when and if it was used at all. By the 1940s the choice had migrated to asphalt, as a preventative measure against sharp protruding rocks or dust, and as early as the 1950s Goodyear® had created a pelletized rubber, which may not have provided adequate fall attenuation, but set the stage for the future of playground surfacing. During the 1970s-1980s much research took place, leading to the safety stan...

Playground equipment -Is Your Playground Designed for Your Specific Needs? I have few regrets from my years of working for municipal governments, but I do have a silly one to share with you. As a Superintendent of Parks, I was tasked with designing and developing over ten parks’ playgrounds that we had received funding for from a Class Action suit against a local developer. I met with community members and staff and had a rewarding time completing this task. The final park I was to coordinate the playground project for was Rainbow Park. I met with the community and staff and chose exciting pink and gray equipment. After we had installed the equipment we had a grand opening where the Director of Parks and Recreation came over to me and asked: Why is this equipment not multi colored? This is Rainbow Park. To Quote Charlie Brown - UGH! When PlaySafe, LLC staff meet with many of our clients to discuss their new playground, they often do not understand the variety of choices that ar...

Playground equipment -Redesigning playgrounds to promote 'loose play' Given the ice crust encasing our streets right now, this might seem to be a strange moment to ponder what makes a good playground. A kid is lucky to gulp a few breaths of fresh air in the minutes between school and home. It feels as if it will be months before the slides are warm enough to touch again. When the thaw does come, as it inevitably will, most children will race out to the kind of playgrounds that feature mass-produced plastic forts done up in circus-inspired colors and perched on spongy mats. Grateful to be liberated from their cabins, they'll climb, slide, and climb again. Then they will repeat that sequence over and over, while their bored parents stare at smartphones. In these days of helicopter parenting and obese first-graders, any opportunity that kids get to run around outdoors certainly has to be applauded. And yet, psychologists and designers are starting to question the value of ...

Playground equipment -Three New Very Unique Inclusive Playspaces Now Open Three new very different playspaces have recently opened in different parts of the country. The different approaches that the community took to create these spaces demonstrate the vast possibilities for inclusivedesign. The spaces are located in Upper St. Clair, PA, which is outside of Pittsburgh, Shady Springs, GA, which is outside of Atlanta, and Palo Alto, CA, which is outside of San Francisco. I was lucky enough to be able to give some input for the one near Pittsburgh, but for the other two I think I need to plan some playground visiting vacations sometime soon. Abernathy Greenway Linear Park This new park includes a plaza, patio, gardens, lighted trails, playgrounds, and the Playable Art Park designed to delight visitors of all ages and abilities. Similar to High Line park in New York City it provides recreationoptions that will appeal to either the casual stroller or an active toddler. The 6.6-a...

Playground equipment -How to build a playground in 10 easy steps It’s exciting learning to do something you know you’ll do again and again … like cooking a favorite meal or wakeboarding … but how often will you build a playground?  For some, it may be a regular occurrence—something that you do as part of your job.  For most others, such as members of the PTA, it’s a once in a lifetime situation that may seem exciting, yet daunting. Building a playground should be as much fun as playing on it. Playworld can help. To get you started, we offer the following suggested steps to take you from point A to point play! 1. Form a committee Make new and influential friends and share responsibilities. Invite peoplewho bring skills your project will need like organization, fundraising, public relations, child development, construction and maintenance. 2. Ask questions You’ll need to know some information before making any hard and fast decisions about your playground. It’s key...

Fitness equipment -Senior Playgrounds Offer Fitness and Community for Older Adults Playgrounds aren’t just for kids. An emerging trend of playgrounds for seniors is transforming the way communities think about adult well-being and public space. These playgrounds make remarkable strides to welcome older adults into what is generally considered the domain of youngsters, and engage them in outdoor physical fitness in the commons, which, by their nature, belong to everyone. As Mental Floss reports, these playgrounds feature “low-impact exercise equipment such as elliptical machines, stationary bikes, and hand-eye dexterity games. The activities are meant to improve balance and flexibility, and while you won’t find twisting slides or monkey bars at these playgrounds, they do sometimes include modified classics like swings and see-saws.” They may also have walking paths, horseshoe pits, and shaded areas to sit and relax. Senior playgrounds are not new—China installed them two decad...

Playground equipment -How to Design Playgrounds for Optimal Sensory Development The daily lives of U.S. children are changing dramatically, and not always for the better. The average 8- to 10-year-old spends nearly eight hours a day with a variety of different media, according to a study by the Kaiser Family Foundation. Older children spend even more time with cell phones, computers, iPads, video games, and television.i However, a sedentary lifestyle brings many concerns and risk factors, including significant limits on the chance for children to develop into balanced, confident, well-adapted adults. For children, time spent actively engaging all of the senses means better physical, cognitive, emotional, and social development. Outdoor playis perhaps the best and most natural way for children to use, develop, and optimize all of their senses, which in turn supports motor, language, social, and even academic skills in meaningful and productive ways. Architects and landscape ar...