children
Don’t Tell Your Secrets to a Whisper Dish
Outside the Woodinville Library, in the wooded suburbs of Redmond and Seattle, Washington is an Exploring Garden with two parabolic dishes that could be mistaken for radio antennas. But watch the children. By now, years after the dishes were first installed, the kids know what to do. One runs to…
Find a Hippo, Create a Yarn Monster and Other Creative Ideas For Kids and Parents
With schools closed, parks and playgrounds off limits and group activities banned, parents everywhere are struggling to find new and creative ways to keep their children active. They’re turning to Facebook groups with names like Activities for Children During Isolation, Virtual Activities for Children and Youth and Best Ideas for…
Top 3 Ways Surfacing Boosts Play
Encouraging Beneficial Play with Surfacing Reducing risk while maintaining a fun play area often represents the main focus when discussing a playground’s surface. All of Goric’s Surfacing and Accessories products meet important ASTM standards for reducing the frequency and severity of fall-related incidents. Such risk reductions are supremely important, and…
Wait, This Is Exercise? Playground Equipment for Fitness and Fun
For the last few weeks, we’ve been talking about ways to get kids moving. While good options for fitness are nearly endless, playgrounds are still at the top of the list. Studies have shown that those who exercise outdoors tend to do so more often than those who primarily work…
10 Ways to Get Kids Moving
Too many calories and too little activity. Those are the two main contributors to childhood obesity, according to the Mayo Clinic. So, if you want to help your child maintain a healthy weight, a diet rich in whole grains, fruits and vegetables, lean meats, fish, poultry, and beans is a…
Designer Spotlight – H Nyunny Kim of Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates
“Who needs to escape the city when you can walk down the street or take the F train to Jay Street or the No. 22 to Clark Street or the B63 bus that goes right to Pier 6 at Atlantic Avenue — and see nature in the city.” That’s Anne…
Play to Learn, The Importance of Recess in Education
As Children Return to School, A Reminder that Daily Play Makes a Measurable Difference Since the early days of one-room school houses, recess has been an important part of education. In those early times, there was often an informal period of play before and after school, in addition to…
Cool Slides – for Architecture, Art & Fun! Part 2
By popular demand, we are posting more slide installations from our very innovative slide manufacturer! MSU Zagreb (Museum of Contemporary Art, Zagreb, Croatia), 2009 Height – 11.65m (45’10”); 2 Stainless steel tube slides with a clear top cover 28th São Paulo Art Biennial – Brazil, 2008 Slide height – 14m (55′);…
Hula, Twist, and Charleston: Thinking in Motion with “Dancing” Play Elements
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…
Beach Series (part 3): To Cell Phone or Not to Cell Phone?
To take the phone or to not take the phone, that is the question. As I write that sentence, I think that this question is not a question at all to many. It is a clear “of course!” or “of course not!” I took my phone for an “in case…
