Movement Is a Must

Cities and schools and licensed childcare centers have adopted playground equipment that is not as stimulating or challenging as those common in the playgrounds built in the 1960s and 70s. Tall swings, tall slides, teeter totters and merry-go-rounds have been replaced by plastic play structures that don't offer as much sensory stimulation and a lot less challenges. This is largely a phenomenon of risk management departments wishing to limit litigation rather than a sound understanding of children's play needs.

Pediatric occupational therapist Angela Hanscom was interviewed by the Washington Post last November. She noted, "Children need rapid, changing, and accelerating movement on a daily basis. They need to swing high up into the air, they need to sled down large hills, they need to spin in circles just for fun, and even hang upside down from the monkey bars. These types of movements are very therapeutic to the growing child and support attention and school-readiness. When children’s movement opportunities are chronically restricted or limited due to insufficient playtime outdoors, playground equipment that no longer challenges, or too much time sitting at a desk,  we often start to see problems with sensory and motor skills, body awareness, self-regulation, and simply focusing in the classroom."

Kids tend to seek out vestibular stimulation (rocking, twirling, balancing, etc.), but it's not as available through park equipment these days. How can we parents offer children age-appropriate motor challenges, some implied risk, and a variety of spinning, swinging, rocking, accelerating movement opportunities? We can seek out play yards and parks that still offer spinning tire swings (Madrona Park) or singleton spinners (Kerry Park), tall swings and zip lines (Salmon Bay Park), tall slides and merry-go-rounds (Seattle Center's "Artists at Play" playground), teeter totters (Jefferson Park on Beacon Hill), etc. Do you have a favorite outdoor playspace that offers open ended and stimulating challenges that engage children for a very long time? Please share those locations with all of us. As children age they need new challenges and more implied risk. Giving them a confident smile as they decide to climb up the ladder of that tall slide can be the best thing ever for their confidence to try new or challenging things (even as the pits of our stomachs may rumble). Since I had spent many years supervising other people's children at play before we had a kiddo, it took me awhile to stop helicoptering around my child on the playground and just let her try everything without me sucking air. I learned through observation what her capabilities were and what to monitor closely. What have your experiences been? Do you feel confident and comfortable with more adventurous and challenging movement and open-ended play environments? What does your child seek out and like to do? Tell us in the comments section.