Month: February 2017

Playgrounds are a common sight in cities around the world. Over the years the design of playground equipment has become more exciting and imaginative. However, in many cases, safety regulations have prevented designers of playground equipment from creating more challenging and exciting environments for children to play in.

Scientific research has proven that playground equipment plays a vital role in the development of a child’s mental and physical abilities. Along with this, it has been shown that encouraging children to take risks further aids their development. Psychologists say that preventing children from encountering and solving the challenges involved in risk-taking, increases the chance of them experiencing anxiety over everyday challenges.

While many playgrounds are carbon copies of each, lacking innovative thought, it’s fortunate to know that there are several playgrounds in existence that push the boundaries of human imagination. We’re going to take a look at some of the most imaginative and exciting playgrounds in the world.

 

Swarovski Crystal World

Renowned for their top quality crystal products, the Austrian company Swarovski used their virtually unlimited budget to create Swarovski Crystal World in 1995, the theme park has become the most popular tourist destination in Austria. The park also includes one of the most exciting playgrounds to be found anywhere. It includes a 45-foot climbing net, multiple rope swings, a trampoline and slides.

 

Lake Macquarie Variety Playground

Located in Spears Park Australia which covers almost 2 hectares of land, this playground provides an incredible array of equipment for children of all abilities, including visually impaired children and those in wheelchairs. The exciting playground facilities include a 9-metre spiral slide, 12-metre high climbing net, a maze, wheelchair accessible play boat, music play elements and plenty more. It’s no wonder the site won the award of ‘best play area in Australia’

 

 

Harry Thomas Sr. Playground

 

This Washington DC playground combines mathematics with a playful design. The Fibonacci sequence is incorporated into the spiral design that is a recurring theme throughout the playground. The Fibonacci sequence is a mathematical calculation that dictates that the next number in the sequence is the sum of the previous two. This numeric sequence is found in many naturally occurring organic shapes, from the spiral of a seashell to the pattern on most flowers. The park also has facilities for disabled children.

 

Woodlands Discovery Playground

The designers of this playground in Memphis intended to create the ultimate 21st-century play experience. To achieve this they consulted with the children who will ultimately end up using the playground. They found that children wanted a variety of different playgrounds linked together, each playground providing new and exciting challenges. In this way, children get to go on a voyage of discovery as they move between play areas.

 

Bounce Below

Bounce Below is one of many exciting and beautiful play activities to be found at Zip Line in Northern Wales. The underground wonderland has been constructed in a Victorian coal mine and features giant trampolines and bounce nets connected by walkways. The brightly lit play equipment is suspended above underground caves, the deepest of which is 180 metres.

 

City Museum St. Louis

 

A ten story building which was once used as a shoe factory has become the sight for the St. Louis City Museum. This could well be the largest playground ever created with some unusual and exciting features like a slide that descends through all ten stories of the building, ending in the basement. There are numerous climbing installations for people of all ages and a 30 ft. tall Ferris wheel on the roof of the building.

 

The Green Heart at Shaw Park

 

The benefits of outdoor play and exercise need not be limited to only children. Shaw Park in Hull has built an outdoor gym area where the whole family can enjoy the health benefits of exercising in the fresh open air.

Ask anyone about their childhood memories and invariably they will conjure up images of summer days spent on the playground. It has become such an integral part of our lives that we can’t imagine a world where playgrounds didn’t exist. However, they are a relatively new addition to the urban landscape and only really became common through the course of the 20^th century.

Early History

Early playgrounds looked very different to what we’ve become used to today. Let’s take a trip through history and find out where it all began. We’ll start at by looking at the humble beginnings of the playground and follow its evolution through to the modern day.

The idea of creating a playground was first introduced in Germany, essentially as a platform to teach children the correct way to play. However, it wasn’t until 1859 that the first children’s playground was built in a Park in Manchester.

 

The idea of building playgrounds for children spread to the United States and in 1886 the first playgrounds started appearing in Boston. These early playgrounds were very crude by modern standards and definitely wouldn’t comply with health and safety regulations today. When playgrounds first emerged, they usually consisted of roughly built structures, made from iron, with sharp edges that could do a lot of damage if they weren’t used properly.

Slow to Catch On

During these early days, playgrounds did not grow too much in popularity. It took until 1907 when US President Roosevelt properly introduced them. This brought about a new enthusiasm and propelled the idea further. Playgrounds became seen as a way to keep children off busy city streets, allowing them to develop their physical, mental and social skills through play.

Early playgrounds were segregated by gender, with separate play areas for boys and girls. Children were supervised on the playground and taught how to play correctly.

Throughout the early 20^th century, playgrounds continued to increase in popularity. The practice of splitting children up by gender fell away and so did many of the regulations about supervision, as it became clear that children actually benefitted from playing on their own terms without adult instruction.

A Recovering Land

After World War II London saw the introduction of “junk playgrounds”. These were the brainchild of landscape architect and children’s rights activist Lady Allen of Hurtwood. In 1953 she changed the name to Adventure Playground and established the National Playing Fields Association – today this is known as the Fields in Trust. The idea was to build playgrounds from recycled material or “junk” – hence the original name. While this was initially a way to make use of the wastage left behind after the extensive bombing of London, these exciting playgrounds gained momentum and spread throughout the rest of the country.

 

As playgrounds have become more commonplace, regulatory bodies have been called in by governing bodies to manage health and safety standards and ensure that children are playing in a safe environment. New materials have since been introduced such plastics and concrete. In addition to this, there has been developments in playground surfaces to make them safer and reduce maintenance. Modern play equipment uses bright colours and many exciting and original shapes to enthuse young minds.

Modern Methods

 

Along with improved safety, playground equipment has become much more imaginative. Designers of playground equipment are constantly challenged to come up with new ideas that are aesthetically pleasing and provide children greater challenges and new fun ideas.

The playground has been evolving for over a century and will continue to do so in the future. What we can be sure of, is that the fun and creative stimulation provided by the playground will continue to excite children for generations to come.

A brand new gym was opened recently in the city of Arvada, Colorado. The gym is specifically designed for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder and is part of the California-based We Rock the Spectrum franchise.

Autism Spectrum Disorder is a developmental disability that causes social, communication and behavioural changes. It is known as a spectrum disorder because it affects people differently, and symptoms can range from mild to severe. About 1.4% of US citizens suffer from the disorder and in the UK this figure is 1.1%.

We Rock the Spectrum gyms provide a safe environment for children with autism and special needs to develop their skills. The gym features 10 different kinds of therapeutic equipment, each designed to deal with the sensory processing issues facing children with the disorder – providing children with the “sensory diet” needed to improve learning and neurological development.

An example of how this works can be seen in the use of a zip line that aids children by providing vestibular sensation, whilst also developing upper arm and core strength.

Owners of the new gym, Amy and Abe Woszczynski discovered the franchise when their five year old son was diagnosed with the disorder. Less than a year later they opened the first gym of its kind in Colorado and a second one is to follow soon.

The proud new owners of the gym feel that it is particularly beneficial because children with the disorder can play alongside children who don’t. This aids their social development and serves to remove the stigma associated with autism.

Facilities such as this one demonstrate the extent to which children are able to learn and develop through play. It is well known that play equipment can also aid development in children who don’t suffer from any form of disability. However for children suffering from Autism Spectrum Disorder and other disabilities, specialised playground equipment does much to help minimise the effects of their disability.

Affording autistic children opportunities such as this not only gives them a chance to enjoy fun activity, but also allows them to interact with other children. Through this interaction they’ll feel less excluded from society develop their self-confidence and general social skills.

With the correct guidance and therapy, children with autism are able to play a meaningful role in society. Facilities that provide fun and stimulating environments development create a wonderful opportunity for children and their parents too.

We are delighted that it’s becoming more common to find playgrounds that cater to children with all types of disabilities. These facilities encourage children with disabilities and those without, to interact in a regular environment. Through doing this, we are developing a generation that is free from the prejudice and ignorance that leads to the marginalisation of people with disabilities.

People have become aware of the important role playgrounds have in many aspects of any child’s physical, social and mental development. The idea of learning through play affects virtually every aspect of their development. For children facing additional challenges brought about by disabilities, the importance of playground learning is so much more significant.

 

Observing the way in which toddlers play with building blocks have shown a lot about how children learn about the world around them from an early age. A study conducted by Michigan State University has looked into the effects of sensory learning and how this develops cognitive skills.

From very early on, children form an awareness of objects using all five senses. Using the example of a young child playing with blocks we can see that they use their eyes and hands to experience the shape, weight and feel of each block. Initially, they will smell and taste the blocks, soon realising that they all taste and smell the same. By going through these processes they form a complete understanding of what a playing block is. This may seem like a simple and self-explanatory process, but it says a lot about how we begin to form cognitive understanding.

Cognitive skills are used for problem solving and creative thinking.  A child that has well developed cognitive skills will be better equipped to solve mathematical and scientific problems. In later life, cognitive skills will help them be more inventive and come up with innovative ideas which may well lead to major new discoveries in the future.

Sensory play is a vital part of early childhood development. It forms the foundation for all further learning including reading, mathematics and science. By experiencing sensory development early on, a child will be able to draw on these skills later in life to aid with problem-solving and facing new challenges.

The playground offers children one of the best opportunities for sensory play. Sensory gardens have become a very popular part of the modern playground. What may seem like a simple play activity, for example playing with water and sand, is actually an important learning experience.

When a child plays with water and sand, all their senses are stimulated and they are inadvertently learning valuable scientific truths that will make later learning much easier. Through touch and feel, they learn the difference between liquid and solid. Through sight, they experience mass – observing that sand sinks in water. The sound of water is different to that of sand, as is its taste and sensation in the mouth. A child will soon learn that sand is not that good to eat and that it causes an unpleasant sensation in the mouth.

All these things seem obvious to us as adults, but the fact is that we had to learn this. The earlier in life we get to do so, the better our chances are of developing good cognitive skills. Providing children with a safe environment to explore their sensory perception in their early development will provide them with the skills needed to succeed in later life.

It is important to allow young children the freedom to discover and learn through play. It must, however, be pointed out that the environment in which they explore their senses should be safe and controlled to a reasonable degree. Learning that sharp objects are dangerous through sensory perception is certainly not the best way for a child to do this.

Play equipment that is created to aid a child’s sensory development is specifically designed to present them with challenges that do not put them at unnecessary risk.