Rock Climbing & Other Challenges

- Written by - filed under Design Ideas, Innovative Designs, Living & Learning, Playgrounds.

Inverted wall climber

As a child I spent many hours on the swing in my backyard, talking to my friends, the trees.  Of course I also loved to slide on slides (my favorite slide must have been at least 80’ long, located at High Park in Toronto –It’s no longer there and I can’t believe I could find… Read more »

Hula, Twist, and Charleston: Thinking in Motion with “Dancing” Play Elements

- filed under Living & Learning, Playgrounds.

Play is an essential learning tool for children. It enhances the cognitive, physical, social, and emotional development. Being curious, I’ve taken a look into what play really is and why it is so important for human beings. The 2009 task force report from the Cambridge, MA Healthy Parks and Playgrounds Initiative concludes the following: Play is… Read more »

Beach Series: Need Things to Do With Kids? Try Playing!

- Written by - filed under Living & Learning, Natural Playgrounds.

Beach Series

It never ceases to amaze me how intensely the adults are playing along side their children: filling up buckets of water to pour into the pits that have been tirelessly dug out, carefully arranging turned over pails of sand to create the walls of a castle, patting sand and making proper use of the dry sand verses wet sand. I can’t help but smile because the adults are really having just as much fun as the children.

A Sculptural Playground to Stretch Your Imagination

- Written by - filed under Innovative Designs, Playgrounds.

So often I hear that a community would like a playground but they don’t want it to “look like a playground”. They want it to “blend with the environment” or “disappear in the landscape” or “look like art or sculptural”. The playground at Playa Vista in Los Angeles depicts this exactly.

The Power of Outdoor Play and Natural Playgrounds

- filed under Natural Playgrounds, Playgrounds.

The Power of Outdoor Play

Parents and guardians are looking for more natural environments for their children to play in. “Children have a natural affinity toward nature. Dirt, water, plants, and small animals attract and hold children’s attention for hours, days, even a lifetime,” say Robin C. Moore and co-author Herb H. Wong in their classic book Natural Learning. Despite this… Read more »

Every Day is Earth Day

- filed under What's New.

“Every Earth Day is a reflection of where we are as a culture,” says independent documentary filmmaker Robert Stone in Leslie Kaufman’s New York Times article. As Earth Day turns 40, it still stands as a subtle reminder to reminisce about green living and ways to create a better future for ourselves and our children. While the corporate world… Read more »