The Benefits of Playground Facilities
Playground facilities are great for the community, as they increase the value of nearby commercial property. This helps a community thrive by attracting people to spend their money and find homes in the area.
It’s important to design a playground that best suits its location. For example, if the site receives harsh sun, shade must be added to prevent equipment from becoming too hot.
1. Safety
Providing safe environments for children to play is one of the primary responsibilities of playground facilities. They do this by ensuring that the equipment and surfacing are in good condition, making sure that tripping hazards like rocks and stumps are removed, and using appropriate sanitizing agents to kill germs.
While age-appropriate equipment and carefully designed playground layouts are important safety measures, they won’t prevent all injuries — especially those resulting from lack of adult supervision. Approximately 40 percent of playground injuries are related to unsupervised play. Well-designed playgrounds take supervision into account by including features that allow adults to see all areas of the playground, especially those where young children are playing.
During inspections, it’s important to look for damage playground facilities and wear on equipment such as bent or broken components, sharp edges that could cause cuts and make surfaces slippery, and gaps between ladder rungs that may trap children. It’s also essential to test the resilience of safety surfacing materials – such as mulch, wood chips, sand or synthetic turf – and to ensure that they’re thick enough to cushion a fall.
Finally, be sure that all play equipment has adequate clearance surrounding it – no more than 6 feet wide and 12 inches deep – to avoid collisions between children using different pieces of equipment (like swings and slides). Make sure that all climbing surfaces are smooth and free of loose dirt or other debris that can slip and hurt children.
2. Enrichment
Children who enjoy frequent and short periods of unstructured play become smarter, healthier and stronger. They’re also better able to concentrate in school and pay attention to academic tasks. Unfortunately, video games, TV and too many scheduled activities have led to fewer opportunities for kids to go outside and play on the playground.
Kids who play on the playground often meet new friends and make social connections that will help them throughout their life. They learn how to get along with others and follow social norms such as taking turns, resolving conflict, sharing and overcoming shyness. These skills will come in handy when they go to work or make friends as adults.
Getting kids involved in enrichment activities is one of the best ways to develop their mental and physical health. These activities are designed to boost their creativity, problem-solving skills and nurture their interests.
Enrichment activities can be as simple as learning a new sport such as basketball, or as complex as creating an art journal or bullet journal. For example, if your child is passionate about music, an enrichment activity like electronic music production can let them channel their inner-composer. Kids can create beat patterns, explore different pitches and even create a song. This creative experience engages their minds and bodies, and it can help them develop a love for music that will last a lifetime.
3. Health
A playground is an outdoor area for children containing recreational equipment, often including slides and swings. Modern playgrounds can include a wide range of equipment including see-saws, merry-go-rounds, walking bridges, monkey bars, climbing walls and log climbers, spring riders, trapeze rings, mazes and more. In addition to offering fun and recreation, these types of equipment can help develop a child’s coordination, strength and problem-solving skills.
Unstructured play is vital to a child’s health and development. It helps kids stay physically fit, which can decrease their risk for obesity. In addition, it can also help them become more confident in their own abilities and lead to increased self-esteem. In fact, research has shown that kids who regularly play on playgrounds are more likely to be more willing to try new things and persist even in difficult academic subjects.
Many natural and man-made objects can be used in playgrounds, but the most common are sandboxes, water features and playground equipment. The latter includes everything from slides to swings to sand castles. A playground can also have a number of different purposes, such as teaching kids to navigate streets safely with a traffic park or encouraging open-ended physical challenges with an adventure playground. Even things like brick walls and paved areas can be used for imaginative play if they’re equipped with chalkboards or activity panels.
4. Community
Community playgrounds give kids a chance to experience social connection and outdoor play in an unstructured environment that can improve their attention span and ability to focus in school. This can lead to better grades and a higher quality of life for all kids.
Moreover, well-designed playgrounds stimulate kids’ cognitive and physical skills through different types of equipment. For instance, climbing and swinging can help them develop coordination, upper- and lower-body strength, balance and motor skills. Playgrounds can also stimulate their sense of sight through bright colors and patterns, and their hearing through musical instruments and other noisemakers. They can also get a sense of their vestibular and proprioceptive movements through equipment like balance beams and slides.
Playgrounds can also provide a space for kids to interact with each other in a new way, building on their communication and collaboration skills. This can improve their social and emotional well-being by helping them become more accepting of others and able to work through conflicts. The social interactions that take place on indoor play area the playground can also increase their bond with parents and other family members, promoting a strong family unit.
Another benefit of a community playground is that it can boost the value of surrounding communities and commercial properties. People are more likely to shop and spend time in a neighborhood that has a park or playground, and they are also more willing to buy a house there.
