It is true that we all have a bit of the kid inside us and when we take our children, grandchildren or younger siblings to a playground, we would like to play as well. We do in away, but we are not allowed on any of the equipment that is provided. Having playground equipment that can be used by all, and I mean all ages, would be a great leap forward in the enjoyment families can spend together.
A Professor Killingsworth from Pittsburg State University’s Department of Health, Human Performance and Recreation, thinks the same way and has formed (with other community members) a non-profit group called Credible Arts Therapies. He has said the idea behind a universally accessible playground is to have a place where everyone, regardless of age or disability, can play together on the same equipment. You can read more about this here: http://www.joplinglobe.com/local/local_story_178210855.html (more…)
Playgrounds are a place where children develop their social skills. Is this something that should be done unsupervised? Do children automatically grasp the concepts of sharing, taking turns, and being a good loser, as well as a winner, without guidance?
I will stick my neck out and say no. As a parent, I would like to know that my child’s play is being supervised in a playground by a teacher or playground monitor. However, this is rarely the case at school. (more…)
Every parent has to have a certain amount of responsibility, especially when it comes to their children and the playground. Kids can be nasty little creatures, so the fact that, not everyone likes everybody, is something that is carried on from childhood.
I’m not saying that in a playground, you should keep your kids away from the ones that they don’t like, but try to have a responsible attitude to how they react to children that are not nice. You have to instill a certain amount of common sense when it comes to your kids, integrating with others, in the playground and not go on their defense at every opportunity. (more…)
Earth Day was on the 22nd April 2008, and many countries extend the courtesy and have an Earth Week where the goal is to “broaden the environmental movement worldwide and to educate and mobilize people, governments, and corporations to take responsibility for a clean and healthy environment”. What better way of helping the environment then giving grants to schools and daycare centers to better their playground surfaces, promote playground safety and help the environment with rubber mulch.
Governor Steve Beshear from the state of Kentucky has done just that by announcing 43 crumb rubber grants (worth almost $1 million) to schools, daycare centers, churches around the state. He recognizes the fact that recycling rubber tires and using the rubber crumbs in playground is both environmentally friendly, economic and helps prevent accidents.
Let’s do a little reminiscing, and cast our minds back to the games we used to play in the playground. We probably remember all the chasing, all the kicking and throwing balls about and the universal doctors and nurses, but do we remember the actual names of the games?
Remember this one? It is where a group of friends split into two groups. In one group, everyone holds hands, and the other group wait to hear the words – “Red Rover, Red Rover, we call Simon over”, and then “Simon” would have to run at the group holding hands to try and break the link.
Children are going to have accidents in the playground, no matter what the apparatus, the playground surface, or what we teach them. There will always be show offs and kids who think they are clever, who use swings as climbing frames, or seesaws as circus training apparatus. Unfortunately, even the best behaved child can lose their balance and injure themselves.
You might think that children having accidents in playgrounds is not a common occurrence – you would be wrong. It is such a common occurrence that several lawyer firms have specialized knowledge on playground accidents and how to pursue compensation.
There is only so much that a parent can teach their child about the environment and being green. Once children reach school age, they become subject to the views of other authority figures like teachers, and the peer pressure from other children.
It’s all very well, that they take heed of your green advice at home, but first chance your child gets away from you, they do the complete opposite, like visit that fast food joint, which you have expressed your environmental concerns over.
I was thinking the other day, look at the playgrounds around here. All the best pieces in the bigger kid’s areas have been removed, so they are left with a few swings, something that no-one knows what it is, a post and not forgetting the other pieces that will remind them of when they were five.
Now, this kind of equipment seems to be used as a kind of message board, peoples names or tags, whatever you want to call them, sprayed on them, a note to some one telling them they are a faggot, or something else, that was probably written before, by their parents, on a park bench somewhere. The only difference being, the parents only wrote it once, and then forgot about it, it was not then plastered on everything they could see within the park or playground area.
Your local playground is an important place for your children to go when they are young, as believe it or not, it is a place where they can get much needed exercise and develop social skills that will still apply in their adult life.
The apparatus in a playground, will vary from place to place, but are likely to include swings, merry-go-rounds, slides, climbing frames and see-saws to name a few. Children using these apparatus on a regular basis will gain confidence, balance, strength and flexibility - all important attributes in growing up and daily life. (more…)
We all want a safe place, like a playground for our children to play, so what do we do if we think that our local playground is not up to scratch? We should not sit and do nothing, but make a stand. Here are some actions you can take.
Talk to other parents and kids at the playground to find out what the favorite and least favorite apparatus are. You can also find out if the children have had any injuries at the playground. This will determine whether there is real concern for playground safety, and you will be able to find potential parent allies for your playground safety campaign. You can involve them in the actions below.
Playgrounds
Let’s do a little reminiscing, and cast our minds back to the games we used to play in the 
There is only so much that a parent can teach their child about the 
I was thinking the other day, look at the 
Your local 
