Things You Should Consider When Designing a Playground
Designing a school playground can prove to be a quite challenging task to accomplish, as you must take into consideration a lot of things in order to make it effective. So this is why we’ve put together a blog post where we will talk a bit about some of the most important things you should consider when designing a playground for schools, nurseries, and parks.
Let the children have a voice
One of the best ways to get useful feedback for future developments is to ask the people who will be using the playground themselves. More and more schools are deciding to give children the opportunity to choose what facilities they would like to be available in their school playgrounds. From challenging mazes to big, colourful snakes, to the all-time classics such as hopscotch playground markings. Students always feel excited and motivated to help and, in this way, it is sure that the playground will be liked by the children.
Easy to find and easy to access
It is really important to make everything easily accessible, especially for children with special access needs. Making the playground inclusive to all children also makes it much more inviting and usable, as kids will not find themselves having any trouble discovering the equipment they need for their games or using it in general. Keeping the playground near the school building is always a good idea, as children will be able to find the playground with ease. Plus, teachers and parents will be less worried as they will know that the children are nearby and safe, and they will be able to supervise them more easily.
Make sure to have a rest area
Children love to play around, but it is important for them to have a place to rest when they get tired. A quiet area that is secluded, and is shady for the warmer days, is a must for children to be able to sit and rest when needed. There may also be quieter children who just enjoy spending some time relaxing, talking, or just resting instead of playing. Students also love to have a proper place to spend some time alone, perhaps for reading or thinking time, or to listen to music. Having such an area in a school playground or park provides an added benefit to the children and is bound to become a favourite ‘safe’ place for many.
Don’t fight with nature, work with it!
One of the most important things to consider when creating a good playground is to make sure that you do not destroy nature in the process. Trees and hedges can make for the perfect boundaries and borders for a playground, so don’t uproot them, use them! They are not only amazing for natural boundaries, but also work well for hooking up a tire as a swing, not to mention they are the perfect solution when it comes to finding a shady place to rest on the sunny days. If you’d like more trees at your school, you can register your interest with us to apply for free saplings – and planting them can also be a great hands-on lesson!
There are a lot of things to consider and plan when it comes to designing a good school playground. It can prove to be quite hard to decide what to go for at first and where to start but we believe that by following these tips, you will feel reassured, more at ease, and will have no trouble when it comes to designing a playground. Remember to make it as effective as possible and to always take the children’s preferences and safety into consideration.
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