Active Playground Spaces Flashcards
5 types of playing on a playground:
- constructive
- functional
- fantasy
- social
- games with rules
Examples of constructive play:
- sand castle
- forts
Examples of functional play:
- monkey bars
- swings
- fire pole
Examples of fantasy play:
- making up games based on animals
- house
- cops and robbers
Examples of social play:
- cooperating
- deciding what games to play
- including people
Examples of games with rules:
- war
- set rules that have consequences if broken
KFC playgrounds =
Kit, Fence, Carpet
KFC playgrounds:
adult designed standardized playscapes created without the involvement of children
Describe KFC playground design:
- designed based on parental fear and desires
- no input from children
- doesn’t provide enough stimulation for play
KFC playground features:
- kit of fixed play equipment
- fence surrounding it
- carpet of rubber surface
- requires little supervision
Children enjoy playing with and using _____ ____.
natural elements
Contact may nature may…
be a human need
The way children understand and experience nature has changed radically -
Nature Deficit Disorder
According to the Bienenstock video, by using trees, tunnels, boulders, and ropes, children are establishing…
- trust for the world
- more stimulation and exploration
According to the Bienenstock video, the problems with new playgrounds are:
- immune
- social/behavioural issues
7 Cs link _____ conditions of outdoor play environments with what is known about the _____ of young children.
- physical
- development
The 7 Cs should be used to …
inform the designing of play spces
7 Cs:
- character
- context
- connectivity
- change
- chance
- clarity
- challenge
Character: 4 design types:
- modular
- organic
- modern
- re-use
Character:
overall feel and design of the outdoor play space
Modular character:
equipment dominates play area, leaving inadequate room for play
Organic character:
- design highlights changing outdoor environment
- includes things children can manipulate
Modern character:
design highlights infrastructure and mechanism of landscape and building
Re-use character:
adaptation of space that was not originally intended for children
Context refers to …
- the small world of the play space itself
- the larger landscape that surrounds the centre
- how they interact with each other
What questions are asked when looking at context?
- area surrounding?
- rooftop?
- roads?
- open?
- type of neighbourhood
- neighbours?
- space?
- micro-climate issues?
Context: more space allows for more…
gross motor activity such as running
Context: less space =
increased aggression or withdrawal
Context: microclimate issues:
- too hot (not enough shade)
- too cold (not enough sun)
- too damp (not enough drainage or shelter)
- too noisy or polluted (from traffic or industry)
Connectivity refers to…
the physical, visual, and cognitive connectivity of the play space
Connectivity helps children understand …
how they should move in different places
Connectivity: Why should the outdoor places be linked to the inside play space?
- convenience
- increases use of outdoor space
- contributes to interior atmosphere
Different pathways should accommodate different forms of ______.
mobility
Looped paths and subordinate paths provide opportunities to _____ the space a different _____ and for ____ _____ at intersections.
- explore
- speeds
- decision making
Without defined pathways, children…
retreat to the margins of the space
Pathways can reduce…
chaotic tricycling
Change refers to…
- the range of differently sized spaces an equipment
- seasonal changes in plants, vegetation, water etc.
What questions should we be asking when assessing change?
- Offer changes in height, speed, direction of
movement for children?
• Offer changes in “potential group size” that can use equipment?
• Does space offer children opportunity to change zones (e.g., water to sand to gravel to vegetation to climbing to swinging)?
• Opportunity to watch vegetation change with the seasons?
Chance refers to…
- opportunities in the play space that allow the child to create, manipulate, and leave an impression on the play space
- open-endedness/flexibility of space
2 components of chance:
- messy zones
- mystery
Messy zones are places to:
- dig
- play with water
- sand
- loose parts provide opportunities to design (molding, shaping etc.)
Mystery:
- spontaneous exploration
- stepping stones, plant material
Clarity refers to…
physical legibility and perceptual imageability of the play space
Clarity: large play structures in the centre makes…
- games like tag or imaginative play difficult
- interrupts the view of adults
Clarity: play spaces should have _____ points clear to prevent accidents.
entry/exits
Clarity: how does soundscape contribute?
- hard surfaces, little vegetation, close to busy streets = louder = confusion and stress
- soft materials, plants, and distance from traffic are quieter
In clarity, we should ask if the different _____ are clear, such as…
- zones
- messy play
- sand play
- water play
- tricycles
In clarity, we should ask if there is ____ for adults and kids.
seating
Challenge refers to…
the degree to which the play space provides sufficient/appropriate physical and cognitive challenges for children
Challenge is the concept of …
risky play
Lack of challenge leads to…
bullying
We should challenge kids to take _____ without being _____.
- risks
- hazardous
Graduated challenges involving several levels of difficulty enables..
optimal level of difficulty
What are the 3 dimensions in evaluating outdoor playground spaces?
- play types/value
- physical elements of a play space
- environmental characteristics of a play space
The play value can be derived or assessed by…
its ability to maximize a child’s developmental functions in 5 key areas
What are the 5 key areas in play value?
- environmental development
- physiological (physical) development
- creative development
- educational development
- social development
Environmental development:
- understand environment through manipulation of movable parts
- variable landform
- natural elements
Physiological development:
- physical fitness challenges
- fine and gross motor
- sensory elements
Creative development:
- enhanced by moving parts
- textures, materials, heights, vegetation, varying landform
- variety of spaces
Educational development:
cognition developed through exploration of shapes, sizes, numbers, movements in multiple mediums
Social development:
- small scale and large scale interactions
- small areas for retreat
- large areas for team games, social re-enactment
11 factors in physical elements of a play space:
- Range of fixed equipment
- Moveable equipment
- Varying sizes of equipment
- Vegetation/trees
- Landform (flat vs hilly)
- Loose materials
- Natural materials
- Water & Sand
- Physical boundaries (fences)
- Seating opportunities
- Range of surface materials
Dimension 2 is:
- description of the physical elements that actually exist within a play space
- greater variety = greater play value
Dimension 3 allows for…
the refinement of specific relationships between the physical elements and environmental significance
5 questions for dimension 3:
- enticing?
- stimulating?
- challenging?
- educational?
- appropriate for all ages?
What do parents want?
- shade
- safety
- independence
- splashpads
- cleanliness
- surfaces
- lighting
- social opportunities
- environmental/natural elements
What do children want?
- age appropriate equipment
- places to play with friends
- variety
- no teenagers
What do adolescents want?
- casual open spaces
- flexible uses
- variety
- range of youth-controlled social activities
Playground spaces can be evaluated using:
- the 7 C’s
- 3 “play value” dimensions
____ playground spaces typically offer more “play value”.
natural
