Top Benefits of Interactive Play Panels
Updated on: January 22, 2024
Our desire to ensure the spaces we inhabit are as inclusive as possible means interactive play panels for playgrounds and parks are in high demand.
Available as a freestanding panel or wall panel, a high-quality activity panel provides a welcome addition to more traditional playground equipment.
Here at Fun & Active Playgrounds, we have a huge collection of outdoor play panels. Our activity walls are weather-proof, hardwearing designs children can use year-round.
Like all of our play equipment, we produce sensory play panels in a wide range of fun and innovative designs. It’s our passion to create play equipment that’s rooted in current national curriculum learning but is also enjoyable and exciting to use.
From sports play panels to play panels which enable children to explore national curriculum science and maths topics, to rotogen activity panels that generate their own power through movement, our collection has something for everyone.
Why Install Activity Play Panels?
Since the 1930s, our understanding of the importance of play and what it means to play has continued to grow. Today, our focus is on both the value of physical play for our health and the critical need for play spaces to be inclusive.
Whilst we know and want our children to engage in energetic play which sees them move around at speed, we also need to provide play equipment for children who don’t want to do that.
The Value of Reflective Play
Quieter play, known as reflective play, holds value for all children.
Some children don’t like to tear around the playground whilst other children can benefit greatly from time out from rushing about. Play panels are a brilliant way to provide high-quality equipment for reflective play that appeals to all.
The unique and bright designs of all our activity panels are instantly appealing. The sensory knobs, levers, surfaces and more, speak to children’s curious minds which is essential because there is lots of value in quieter play.
Cognitive Development & Fine Motor Skills
Many studies by neuroscientists have found that giving our brain space to be more reflective can help us to be more creative, productive, and innovative.
Yet play panel activities are not passive in any way. These are interactive apparatus which require children to engage lots of cognitive and motor skills that they don’t often get to use on the playground.
The activities play panels contain promote investigative play and problem-solving which are great for cognitive development.
Meanwhile, the range of elements to be dragged, pulled, twisted, and pushed provide brilliant opportunities for pupils to build important fine motor skills they need for classroom learning.
By giving the mind and body space to calm down whilst still remaining active, play panels are brilliant for helping children to:
- relax,
- have space to think,
- interact with others,
- practise mindfulness,
- develop cognitive skills,
- and fine motor skills.
Let’s take a closer look at the top benefits of interactive play panels.
Top Benefits of Interactive Play Panels
1. Variety
Making quieter playground apparatus available for all children ensures everyone has the option to do something more reflective. For staff, it can be really valuable to have nice equipment for reflective play that they can suggest children who need help to regulate their emotions use. Children themselves, can go to the equipment voluntarily when they know they need to calm down or step away from a situation that’s not positive.
Similarly, it’s really helpful to have apparatus present that staff can encourage children who are reluctant to play with their peers to use. The dedicated space which a play panel creates is much more welcoming for a shy child than the many noisier, busy areas of a playground. In this way, interactive play panels can show children that there are a variety of ways to play, and each is as important as the other.
Pupils who have had time to soothe and engage their mind will be better prepared to return to the classroom and focus on learning.
2. Diverse Social Interactions
By appealing to different types of children, interactive play panels can promote interactions between a wider range of pupils.
The sensory and interactive elements of activity walls mean children will be talking, getting physically close to each other, exercising lots of cognitive skills, and working together to solve each puzzle.
3. Language Development
The unique experience each of our play panels provides means children will want to talk about what they can see and what they think each element does.
Curiosity and collaboration in the quieter, inclusive and more private zone activity play panels create give pupils fantastic opportunities to develop their language skills.
As they work together to investigate the possibilities each open-ended activity offers, children will be learning from each other and improving how they communicate.
The more different groups of children can interact with each other, the better the sense of community will be across the school so outdoor activity walls can help to unite children in a way that other play equipment can’t.
4. Inclusive
Free from the need to display physical agility, outdoor activity stations are one of the most inclusive pieces of playground equipment around. Again, this is fantastic for cohesion across classes and the school overall but it’s also important for children’s self esteem. So many children dread playtimes because they lack the confidence or physical skills that so much traditional play equipment requires.
When you can go outside and know there are:
- logic games like Four In a Row,
- maths or science-based activities like the Solar Explorer or Cosmos Play Panel,
- puzzles like the Animal Origins Maze,
- or musical instruments like our snazzy guitar…
…playtime doesn’t have to feel so intimidating.
We use themes and contexts that appeal to a diverse range of children, so every activity panel is accessible to all pupils.
5. Space-Saving
The vertical shape of play panels means they can fit easily into any space. Unlike most outdoor play equipment, play panels are slimline designs you can attach to walls or use as freestanding apparatus.
Here at Fun & Active Playgrounds, we’ve gone one step further and designed activity stations in a range of sizes so there’s a design to suit every play space, no matter how small.
Our totem play panels are our narrowest designs whilst our freestanding panels are larger structures with multiple panels for bigger groups of children to play together.
Browse the collection and see which style would be best for your space.
Jess Sparks
Jess is deeply committed to supporting our mission of positively impacting UK outdoor play environments to promote healthy lifestyles in children.
With a CIM Level 6 Diploma in Sustainable Marketing, Jess channels her passion for sustainability into her marketing role, using her skills to promote eco-conscious practices and raise awareness for our initiatives.
Jess’ experience within the industry is instrumental in driving engagement and supporting connections with those who require ultra-durable, high-grade playground markings both locally and internationally.