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Contents
Play and Playground Magazine | Volume 17 No. 1 | Spring 2017
8
Features
Inviting Play
8
By Francesca Zavacky, M.Ed.
4 Outdoor Fitness Trends in 2017
12
By Marshall Jones
Play On!
16
Active programming solutions to meet physical education standards on the playground By Anne-Marie Spencer
Image courtesy of Francesca Zavacky
12
20
Play, Playcourts, Playfields, And Playground Distinctions By Reeve Brenner
22
Playing, Fitness for Children, and Healthy Eating Go Hand in Hand By Pat Rumbaugh, The Play Lady
Image courtesy of Anne-Marie Spencer
16
DEPARTMENTS 6 Editor's Notes 28 Happening Today In Play / CPSI Course Schedule 29 PGPedia.com
Image courtesy of Anne-Marie Spencer
4 PLAY AND PLAYGROUND MAGAZINE SPRING 2017
Image courtesy of Rob Hainer/Shutterstock.com
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SPRING 2017 PLAY AND PLAYGROUND MAGAZINE 5
Magazine Publisher Tate Schuldies
Aaron Hamilton, Editor...
On the EDGE
Editor Aaron Hamilton
Advertising Director Tate Schuldies
Design Jake Amen
Accounting Ron Walker
Webmaster Jake Amen
Contributing Authors Reeve Brenner Marshall Jones Pat Rumbaugh Anne-Marie Spencer Francesca Zavacky, M.Ed.
Copyright, 2017 published by Playground Professionals, LLC, 4 issues per year, sub rates, back copies, foreign, reproduction prohibitions, all rights reserved, not responsible for content of ads and submitted materials, mail permits.
CORPORATE OFFICE Playground Professionals LLC P.O. Box 595 Ashton, Idaho 83420
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A SINGLE BEAD of sweat rolls off my cheek and I watch it as it drops to the well-padded safety mat 20 feet below. An inner voice guides my decision of which movement should follow. Where should I place my hand next? Can I reach that hold? Will my toes hold my weight while I shift my hand? These are not the type of decisions that usually fill my regular Monday afternoon, but I try to stay focused purely on the task at hand. Instead that inner voice keeps repeating climber Evan Hardin’s old hack, the one that says, “Good judgment comes from experience, and experience comes from bad judgment.” Yeah, that’s right. I remember that I’m on belay as I hang here, and I’m glad. I seem to be aware of my every muscle. “What comes next?” I almost whisper to myself. “Maybe that hold up just above and to my left.” I’ve scrambled up this wall without hesitation or second thoughts but I am not finished yet. I see two options — a break to the left with a grip jutting horizontal and seemingly just out of reach or a grip offset vertically and directly above me to the right. I feel
6 PLAY AND PLAYGROUND MAGAZINE SPRING 2017
the burn in my muscles at this point and I let my body tell me my next move. I reach for the left grip which seems more of a challenge to execute as I push off the wall with my lower body, done with a swift and desperate well-timed reach. “Got it!” I again whisper subconsciously as I find a new and comforting support to shift weight onto my right leg.
This is when it dawns on me. I am having a blast! Outside The Edge in the parking lot 3 foot high piles of snow and ice surround the property and patchy ice covers the blacktop. A bitter breeze whips snowdust around the parking lot. Winters in East Idaho can be long and cold and this one, even in late February 2017, is one for the record books. This could be a big factor helpwww.playgroundprofessionals.com/magazine
ing to cause such a buzz around town for the grand opening of Idaho’s largest and newest indoor climbing gym. Since the announcement of construction for The Edge Climbing Gym was first made in 2015, residents of Ammon, especially rock climbers, have been anxiously awaiting their first ascent up the summer-warm face of this massive indoor climbing wall. Ammon is a small but active community that lives snugly in the valley shadowed by the mighty Teton Mountain range just east of Idaho Falls. Rock climbing is a mainstay of the active lifestyle of this area, and having this amazing, ever changing, sheer face to scale will double the year round climb-time. The Edge Climbing Gym is just getting started, but bringing this project together was no easy task. A private owner acquired the massive climbing walls from Jackson Hole’s only climbing gym, which closed in 2014. The climbing wall was disassembled and moved 85 miles by semi-trailer on a twisting mountain road to its new home in Ammon. The owner’s vision was not only to provide a larger climbing facility than was available in Jackson Hole, but a well-rounded, full service gym as well, all under one very big and very high roof. The open space of the building provides the space and height necessary to create a second floor workout area that overlooks the entire gym and over 18,000 square feet of climbing wall. The Edge has a complete line-up of exercise equipment, including free weights, and a large area dedicated to children. With the additional option of cutting-edge, automatic belays, The Edge is an entirely different kind of year-round, full-spectrum indoor climbing and fitness destination. Having lived and played in the Idaho Falls area for more than 8 years, I can attest to the excitement and anticipation among the locals, especially the climbers, and it is well-founded excitement. Sure, there are other gyms, and pools can be found that feature indoor shelter and warmth from the brutal winter. One may even find larger gyms with rows and rows of treadmills and elliptical See Edge on page 31
www.playgroundprofessionals.com/magazine
SPRING 2017 PLAY AND PLAYGROUND MAGAZINE 7
nviting I
Play
by Francesca Zavacky, M.Ed.
RECESS IS NOT JUST a break for kids in school. It’s important to take a break and engage in fun activity in any environment in order to stay energized and engaged. Yet the concept of recess seems to suggest giving people permission to slack off and be unproductive. Nothing could be further from the
truth. In today’s high-stakes testing and competitive work world, taking a break to be active is frowned upon and disappearing from the daily lives of children and adults. School days are getting longer, and there is a blur about when the work day begins and ends for today’s adults. Brain research shows that after bouts
8 PLAY AND PLAYGROUND MAGAZINE SPRING 2017
of physical activity the brain is more engaged than ever and ready to spark on all cylinders. Evidence shows that people are more alert and focused after physical activity, resulting in more productive engagement of the brain. The task at hand gets a new and energized look after being active. www.playgroundprofessionals.com/magazine
Photos courtesy of Patrick Daniel Trombly and Fit and Fun Playscapes
Physical Activity Recommendations
In the 2008 Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services made the recommendation that children and adolescents should engage in 60 minutes of physical activity each day. Adults should do at least 150 minutes (2 hours and 30 minutes) a week of moderate-intensity, or 75 minutes (1 hour and 15 minutes) a week of vigorous-intensity aerobic physical activity, or an equivalent combination of moderateand vigorous-intensity aerobic activity. Engaging in the recommended amounts of physical activity doesn’t need to be accomplished all at once. Physical activity breaks are a manageable way to fit in physical activity. Yes, that means recess.
Strategies for Recess
Recently the National Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) partnered with SHAPE America (Society of Health and Physical Educators) to develop guidance for schools to support recess and active play that can benefit student health, wellness, and academic achievement. After reviewing peer-reviewed articles, guidelines, reports, and resources from government agencies and non-governmental organizations, 19 strategies that help increase participation in physical activity and improve academic achievement were identified. The strategies are organized around logical categories that chart the actions www.playgroundprofessionals.com/magazine
to take when planning for recess and creating the optimal environment that invites physical activity. There is more to it than installing structures and expecting kids and people of all ages to be motivated to move.
Make Leadership Decisions
In schools, leaders must make decisions about policies regarding recess, where it will be held, and how it will be supervised. Supervision and training do not prescribe what children will participate in during recess, but they do ensure a safe environment with optimal security for healthy play.
Communicate and Enforce Behavioral and Safety Expectations
For recess to be a safe place to play, a number of considerations must be addressed. Safe spaces and facilities that meet nationally recommended safety standards, and are regularly inspected, are critical to an injury-free and bullying-free recess. Establishing appropriate behaviors in the play setting is very important. Since school playground facilities are often part of a city or county parks and recreation system, this category is often a joint responsibility of local government and the education system. Collaboration is critical if youth are to have access to safe play spaces with common expectations for use, both during school hours and when schools are closed.
Create an Environment Supportive of Physical Activity During Recess
This group of recommendations has the most supporting research for promoting physical activity and can make the strongest impact on physical activity engagement before, during, and after school hours. Providing physical activity equipment, adding markings to the playground or physical activity spaces, creating physical activity zones, and providing planned activities or activity cards all encourage and invite people of all ages to engage in physical activity. Providing a combination of as many of the above strategies as possible can result in greater physical activity engagement. More on that later.
Engage the School Community to Support Recess
These strategies involve establishing roles and responsibilities for providing recess, supporting the recess program at a school, and involving students in the planning and implementation of activities. It is always a win-win when the entire school community rallies around a program to support it financially and with a strong supportive presence. Engaging the school community to advocate for active play is the recipe for success and longevity.
Gather Information on Recess
As with any program, tracking the progress of a program involves ob-
SPRING 2017 PLAY AND PLAYGROUND MAGAZINE 9
playgrounds outside of school hours. Families often bring their children to playgrounds outside of school hours and on weekends for outdoor play. Families who are homeschooling their children are using parks as their physical education venue. It’s important that the playgrounds and parks that are not part of a school property invite play that can be engaged in by people of all ages. Let’s take a look again at the category related to creating a physical environment that supports physical activity.
Inviting Play
serving what happens and gathering information on the results. School recess can positively affect student attention in class, attendance at school, positive behaviors, collaboration and social skills, and general academic achievement. Tracking these results is important to garner the support needed to sustain recess over time.
It’s necessary to take a realistic look at play spaces and be responsive about meeting the needs of the user. In one community where I lived, we were considering a playground renovation at a school I worked at where students ranged in age from ages 5-10. To research what was available locally, I went to every school playground to see how the other spaces invited play. After observing each space and taking photos, it was evident that the facilities were mostly paved spaces that had not been maintained for a long time. There were large cracks in the pavement
with grass growing in them, no markings for play, and broken structures, where they existed at all. Some of the structures were too tall to be used by the students at the schools they were located at and were set at adult heights. The spaces did not invite play, and students were outside playing, but avoiding these spaces.
Planning is Critical
The challenge is being mindful of the users of various play spaces. School playgrounds should be planned with the age of the users as the primary audience. In a school with 350 students, 700 feet will step out onto that playground every day. Research shows that during recess, a student will take 1,062 steps. If the students participate in recess every day, that is 371,700 steps in one day! With about 180 days of school each year, that is nearly 67 million steps per day on the playground. That certainly makes the case for who is the primary user for a school playground. It also makes the case for installing structures that can be used by the intended age group. For an elementary school, basketball or other goals should be installed at a height appropriate for the age range using the goals, not the standard adult heights that kids cannot reach while practicing. Middle and high schools are more suited to regulation height goals and court markings.
Other Benefits of Recess
Recess provides many other benefits to youth as they are growing up. During recess, kids practice activities they like in an informal setting with their friends, often the gateway for their selection of sports and other activities that they will choose for a lifetime. Ongoing research shows that multiple sport athletes become better athletes after high school. Self-efficacy for participation in a wide variety of activities will likely result in a young person who is confident in the many options of physical activity they can and will participate in for life.
Recess Outside of School
Though the recess environment of a school playground is largely focused on what will occur during school hours, playground professionals should also consider what will happen in parks and 10 PLAY AND PLAYGROUND MAGAZINE SPRING 2017
www.playgroundprofessionals.com/magazine
Markings Motivate
One of the most cost effective and motivating strategies is the installation of markings. Markings invite play that is creative, personal, and does not necessarily involve equipment. With mindful planning, markings can create zones that promote individual play, small group play, team play, or parent-child play. They can be installed on paved surfaces, sidewalks, at bus stops, walls, and create activity paths from one location to another. Markings can be used by children and adults of all ages and of all ability levels. Colorful markings invite play and interaction, during planning, installation, and after they are installed. They can turn a summer sprayground into an activity space during cooler months, create an active path from school to downtown, and keep a young child active in a park. Markings can direct families along a fitness trail with challenges for both child and parent, all without equipment or consumable supplies. The potential with markings and the planned activities that they can direct is unlimited and do not require special supervision.
Lifetime Activity
The critical time to teach youth that being active is fun is during their early years. Being physically active as kids teaches them skills that transfer across their childhood. Confidence in the skills they have learned motivates them to select their favorites by the time they reach high school. For most kids, these important and early successes are fueled by the positive experiences that they have engaged in on a school playground or local park, reinforcing the lifelong impact of local parks and playgrounds on the future of community physical activity. www.playgroundprofessionals.com/magazine
FRANCESCA ZAVACKY, M.ED.
Francesca Zavacky is the co-author of Strategies for Recess in Schools, Recess Planning in Schools: A Guide to Putting Strategies for Recess into Practice, and Comprehensive School Physical Activity Programs: A Guide for Schools. A veteran health and physical education teacher, and leader in physical education and physical activity, she has received numerous teaching awards, including NASPE Teacher of the Year. Francesca has conducted over 200 professional development sessions across the United States on topics as diverse as children’s fitness, strategies for recess in schools, interdisciplinary physical education, student assessment, and comprehensive school physical activity programs. Formerly a Project Director at SHAPE America for a cooperative agreement with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), she has served as master trainer for CDC’s comprehensive school physical activity program and recess trainings. Francesca is a connector who is committed to improving professional practice and creating a culture of physical activity for youth across the country.
Email: fzavacky@gmail.com SPRING 2017 PLAY AND PLAYGROUND MAGAZINE 11
4 Outdoor
Fitness Trends in 2017 12 PLAY AND PLAYGROUND MAGAZINE SPRING 2017
by Marshall Jones
www.playgroundprofessionals.com/magazine
EVERYONE KNOWS that spending time outdoors is better for you than vegging out on the couch. Kids and adults who spend more time outside see benefits to both their physical and mental health. With spring right around the corner, there’s no reason to be cooped up in the gym either. Here are four great ways you can join in on the outdoor fitness fun with new twists on outdoor workout spaces. We’ll also take a look at some of the park/recreation safety surfacing products that are used in these environments to make them safer, more attractive, and more fun.
Obstacle Courses
of EPDM/TPV rubber granules and a cushion layer of shredded recycled rubber. It is manufactured and poured in place on-site, providing a seamless, shock-absorbing surface. No Fault rubber safety surfacing products can incorporate creative designs, patterns, and graphics that are limited only to your imagination.
Public Fitness Zones
No Fault Safety Surface was installed in Bonham, Texas. This kind of a jogging/walking trail is perfect for CrossFit or Public Fitness Zones.
In 2017, the public park isn’t just for slides and merry-go-rounds. Now, kids and adults can get physically fit with a visit to their local park or public green space. Some parks are even adopting the term "outdoor fitness park” to describe what they offer. Best of all, there’s no membership fee, un-
strength training, cardio-vascular (aeroOnce found only in military boot bics), and flexibility/stretching. They camps, the obstacle course now plays incorporate ADA-accessible equipment the starring role in the TV show Ninja to make the zone inclusive for all. All Warrior and is the inspiration behind equipment is sturdy and can withstand Tough Mudder, a series of muddy all weather conditions. Combined with obstacle races inspired by British Special nearby jogging trails, tennis courts, or Forces training. basketball courts, fitness zones These are tests of strength, makes the outdoor fitness expeendurance and, in some cases, rience complete for everyone. smarts as participants look to You don’t have to settle for find the best way over walls, a treadmill to get your run on. up rope ladders, and through Head for the happy trails of the mucky pits. It’s an aerobic great outdoors. In some cities, workout like none other, and these trails feature exercise stathe more intense courses take tions with things like traverse endurance training to master. rings, pull up bars, and climbing Although these areas may be walls, so users can easily get in a modeled after military courses, whole-body workout. they are publicly accessible and Public fitness zones can be suit a wide range of ages. Obsta- Outdoor gyms are an investment in healthier lifestyles while build- great for CrossFit workouts, ing better parks and stronger communities. cle courses are a fun way to get which incorporate interval kids and the rest of the family training, weightlifting, and moving. Challenge courses for more. There is probably alchildren might include foam-covered like the local gym. These parks provide ready a trailside CrossFit group or hurdles and plastic trapeze rings. Partic- exercise equipment strategically placed outdoor boot camp near you. These ipants can time how long it takes to get along jogging paths, letting users work social workouts are extremely fun and through a course, adding a dimension of on muscle tone, flexibility, and cardio include drills, bodyweight exercises, and competiveness and social interaction. training. endurance training. So, if you’re lookMany parks departments around the Free outdoor gyms for teens and ing for community spirit and the kind country are hosting organized “chaladults have been cropping up in public of motivation that comes in a group lenge course” programs that promote park areas, residential developments, workout outdoors, think about getting team-building and cooperation, while and business complexes in the last few in the zone! obstacle course races like the Warrior years. Sometimes called “adult playMake Nightclubs a Morning Dash and Tough Mudder are true athgrounds,” these fitness zones have a lot Thing letic tests of stamina and fortitude. more to offer than a set of chin-up bars Ever been to a 7 a.m. dance party? If you’re building an obstacle course, or two. Generally speaking, the club scene is you might want to consider using a The best fitness zones in large metthe antithesis of a healthy workout. But rubber surfacing product like No Fault ropolitan areas have equipment to acthis fitness trend means getting together Safety Surface. It is a combination commodate workouts of different types: www.playgroundprofessionals.com/magazine
SPRING 2017 PLAY AND PLAYGROUND MAGAZINE 13
Glowing Greens in Portland, Oregon (image via portlandtribune.com)
Raving on by the dawn’s early light (photo via daybreaker.com)
with friends for high-energy dance moves to a DJ’s beats, and you’re more likely to have a smoothie or kombucha in one hand than a cocktail. Whether they’re happening in the great outdoors (the park is a great place to watch the sunrise) or in an actual music venue, an early-morning rave might take some getting used to. But for a lot of young adults, electronic music and stimulating lights are a better way to start the day than high-calorie muffins and caramel lattes. While early-morning aerobics, Pilates, and spin classes are often accompanied by up-tempo music, these sober dance parties take place in parks or large venues that recreate the look and feel of a noisy nightclub. Dancers enjoy the social aspect that comes with clubbing. They come garbed in the typical yoga pants and gym clothes, or they may choose something a little more exciting. This is definitely more Lady Gaga than Jane Fonda. Sessions are often led by professional dancers. A company called Daybreaker has hosted two-hour morning dance parties (called “Awakenings”) in cities including New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Atlanta. A competitor called Morning Gloryville has been doing the same thing on an international scale.
Getting into the Swing with Miniature Golf
“Real” golf is downright boring compared to the giant dinosaurs, windmills, arch bridges, and loop-the-loops you find in miniature golf or “putt-putt” golf. In 2017, American mini golf officially turns 100 years old, since the first course in the States was created in North Carolina. Its popularity over ensuing decades can be chalked up to how family-friendly and fun the game is, though there is an element of serious competition as well. Indeed, The World MiniGolf Sports Federation recently joined the General Association of the International Sports Federation, meaning it could eventually become an Olympic event! So, what qualifies a game of mini golf as a fitness trend in 2017? It seems that mini golf has gotten big in Europe in recent years, and it has even spread as far away as China. New courses are cropping up all the time, and the layouts are getting more and more creative, with themes and hazards never before imagined becoming more and more common. For example, Portland’s Glowing Greens boasts a glow-in-the-dark minigolf adventure under black lights and creepy skeleton sculptures. And Molten Mountain in South Carolina is a grueling 36-hole course inside an “active” volcano (well, an air-conditioned volcano that “erupts” every half hour).
14 PLAY AND PLAYGROUND MAGAZINE SPRING 2017
Ok, but what about fitness? It turns out miniature golf isn’t a bad way to get cardiovascular exercise, and you can burn around 300 calories during a game of nine holes. Players of all ages will develop hand-eye coordination and walking and putting works out various muscles in their body. Besides, any chance to spend some time in the fresh air with friends is going to have a relaxing effect on your body and mind.
MARSHALL JONES
Marshall Jones is a digital marketing specialist and copywriter living in Austin, TX. He has been on the marketing and content team at No Fault Sport Group, LLC since 2015 and is excited to be a part of the growing playground safety surface and recreation industries. See more from No Fault Sport Group
www.nofault.com
www.playgroundprofessionals.com/magazine
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Play On! Active programming solutions to meet physical education standards on the playground by Anne-Marie Spencer
ALL AROUND the country, playgrounds offer children health benefits that promote active lifestyles and overall fitness. Play develops a variety of fitness skills that help children develop into well-rounded adults and can instill a love of active behavior that carries throughout their life. Physical activity through play is critical for healthy lifestyles. Communities are seeking valid ways to address the dramatic rise in childhood obesity and combat sedentary lifestyles in new, exciting
16 PLAY AND PLAYGROUND MAGAZINE SPRING 2017
ways. By providing evidence-based programs and well-designed outdoor play environments that intentionally promote fitness and physical activity, schools, parks, and activity centers can create more available opportunities for children to engage and have access to active play. SHAPE America has established standards for developing physicallyliterate students “who have the knowledge, skills, and confi-
www.playgroundprofessionals.com/magazine
Play On includes: • Play On! curriculum guidebook: 125 standards-based playground activities and exercises for kids, grades PreK-5 • Assessment worksheets and equipment lists • National Standards of Physical Activity alignment matrix • Safety, implementation, inclusion, and teaching strategies • Design strategies • Funding resources • Playground environments aligned with Play On! activities and design strategies to promote higher levels of physical activity and exercise for kids dence to enjoy a lifetime of healthful physical activity” (SHAPE America, 2014). These standards have become the guiding principles of meaningful and significant content in physical education. Now, through a partnership between PlayCore and SHAPE America, programmers and physical educators can help children meet these fitness guidelines with fun activities that fully align with the SHAPE America standards in a program called Play On! The Play On! Program includes 125 playground activities that provide purposeful ways www.playgroundprofessionals.com/magazine
for schools and recreation professionals to effectively address health and wellness initiatives and provide active play initiatives through the use of six key play elements that promote fitness — balancing, brachiating, climbing, spinning, sliding, and swinging. For schools and parks alike, it provides another way to maximize their playground investment while ensuring that all children are active in play. Through a research grant contributed by SHAPE America, Dr. Yuanglong Liu and Dr. Suzan F. Ayers of
• Professional development training module • The Play On! National Demonstration Site program – national recognition and press exposure for sites that implement use of the program through the use of six elements of play to promote youth fitness and exercise for kids
SPRING 2017 PLAY AND PLAYGROUND MAGAZINE 17
the Department of Health, Physical Education, and Recreation, Western Michigan University, developed and implemented an objective analysis of the Play On! program in order to measure Play On! as a valid program for promoting healthy physical activity in children. They conducted a national study to evaluate the program that provided specific information about the correlation between the program and physical activity benefits. Fourteen schools were selected in a national Beta Site selection process through SHAPE America, in which schools submitted an application to volunteer to participate in the research. Approximately 6,000 children from 14 Beta Sites in 5 states participated in the research study. Research included a series of pre- and post-intervention surveys completed by the teacher, children, and parents, as well as two focus groups at one of the Beta Sites to qualitatively measure physical activity and skill development. The research findings showed: • 91% of teachers reported that playground use increased • 90% of teachers plan to use the program in the future • 100% rated the program 4-5 on a 5-point scale • 25% of parents participated in more family activity after the Play On! program was initiated • 100% of students reported having fun engaging in the activities • 90-100% of teachers reported that Play On! motivated students to participate in regular, enjoyable, physical activity in a safe and supervised environment Play On! is a rich resource that offers a variety of meaningful tools to help educators and programmers design meaningful physical education programs. This unique program can become a vital component in efforts to strengthen, educate, and build healthier communities through play, while maximizing the potential of playgrounds. Playgrounds can be designed to fully implement the Play On! program by incorporating pieces of equipment that promote the six key elements of play. Offering a developmental progression of skills within the equipment
is important so there are activities that match current skill levels, as well as activities to aspire to in order to reach the next level of fitness. As an example, a solid, vertically-oriented climber is a great piece for beginners, while an open, rung-style, taller vertical climber might attract more skilled climbers. Considering variety in the types of equipment is also important for implementing the program as the activities are designed to promote brachiating/ upper body bilateral coordination (alternating arm swinging-hangingcrawling), climbing, swinging, slid-
18 PLAY AND PLAYGROUND MAGAZINE SPRING 2017
ing, spinning, and balancing in order to promote a well-rounded exercise program. Even more exciting, children who may not be enthusiastic about team sports or traditional physical education exercises remain engaged with Play On! because the program is play-based, and children see play as fun, not exercise. In addition, since the programmer can utilize the entire playground and use different activities to engage several groups of children at the same time, the entire group stays active, since no one needs to “wait for a turn.” www.playgroundprofessionals.com/magazine
Maintaining your parks and playgrounds just got a lot easier.
877.984.0418
info@playgroundguardian.com A well-designed play space provides a critical opportunity to address the needs of the whole child and offer a wide variety of activities that motivate, engage, and challenge all children. Specific designs can be selected that encourage children to actively move through play and develop important fitness skills that align with national standards for physical activity. This unique program can become a vital component in strengthening, educating, and building healthy communities through play, while maximizing the potential of the playground. www.playgroundprofessionals.com/magazine
Play & Playground
Events
ANNE-MARIE SPENCER Anne-Marie Spencer is the Corporate VP Of Marketing for PlayCore and works in their Center for Professional Development. In her spare time she is an avid outdoor enthusiast and obstacle racer.
www.playcore.com
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SPRING 2017 PLAY AND PLAYGROUND MAGAZINE 19
Play, Playcourts, Playfields, by Reeve Brenner There are important nuances and subtleties in the distinction between the concept of play and the venues we call playgrounds. The title of this magazine “play and playground” is well advised. Here is why: the concept of play itself evokes important distinctions such as purposeful play and spontaneous play, individual play and team play, competitive and noncompetitive play, self-competitive play and opponent competitive play, facilities and programs. All of these
distinctions fall within the broader meaning of the notion of play itself. In passing we might also observe that there are playgrounds, playcourts, and playfields. Playgrounds are intended for younger children, especially those for preschool children, that have climbing and traditional structures of ramps and platforms familiar to all. Unfortunately, there is not much to do for a child in a wheelchair except to be rolled in and rolled out. And a photo-op! Crawling, climbing structures of a conventional playground, even if accessible, marginalize children who are differently able inside the playground as much as outside. Although playgrounds are outgrown rather quickly, they serve as a gathering point for children and families, and many are particularly attractive aesthetically. Playfields, usually ballplaying, are also well established in the panoply of facilities offered by a community:
20 PLAY AND PLAYGROUND MAGAZINE SPRING 2017
basketball, tennis, football, soccer, for which budgets, space, and attention are allocated, many would say disproportionately. These are in large part ballplaying sports that are opponentcompetitive rather than self-competitive. Often body banging! It is a good thing that football players’ injuries are being reevaluated, and sports without brutal contact and sports based on self competition such as golf, bowling, and Bankshot are being advanced in some quarters. The latter including Bankshot Basketball, Bankshot Tennis, and Bankshot Soccer were introduced precisely as self-competitive sports – sports without opponents – that enable mobility-impaired and individuals with developmental disabilities to participate at any given moment in a drop-in, walkon facility accessible and inclusive for all members of a family. Playing alongside rather than against others is achieved by self-competitive www.playgroundprofessionals.com/magazine
“Social justice is not of built on the continuum right and wrong. uum of It is built on the contin ” inclusion and exclusion.
And Playground Distinctions sports. Full families, including wheelchair users and other differently-able individuals, are afforded a drop-in any time facility without having to wait for a program or for an appointment, supervision, or instruction. And yet purposeful play is achieved, because inclusion is accomplished by self-competitive ballplaying sports. The best players can play alongside beginners precisely because there is no offense or defense. One takes on the challenge of the sport rather than the challenge of another competitor. No one walks off the playcourt of a self-competitive sport having been defeated. Or having defeated or “beaten” someone else. Self-enhancement and self-improvement are derived from selfcompetitive scoring showing how one’s skills and athletic capabilities are being improved, enhanced, and developed with a simple self-focused metric to evaluate progress. www.playgroundprofessionals.com/magazine
It will take some time to shift the emphasis from defeating others to improving self at play: sports without opponents. Bankshot is a good beginning but only a beginning. To turn the ship around from body contact sports which require defeating others, that are fast moving, and strength-based activities to total mix inclusive play will take deliberate effort. These distinctions among the important meanings and inferences are, as concepts, worthy of continuous unpacking and reconsideration. The ideas in and of themselves speak volumes about social justice and human rights. REEVE BRENNER See more from Rabbi Reeve Brenner at www.playgroundprofessionals.com/contributors/reevebrenner
www.nareletsplayfair.com SPRING 2017 PLAY AND PLAYGROUND MAGAZINE 21
Image courtesy of Vasilyev Alexandr/Shutterstock.com
Playing, Fitness for Children, and Healthy Eating Go Hand in Hand by Pat Rumbaugh
IN AN IDEAL WORLD every child would get a minimum of sixty minutes of physical activity playing daily. All children would eat three healthy meals and two nutritious snacks every day. Parents would not have to worry if their children were getting enough physical exercise and eating a healthy diet. Last I checked, we don’t live in an ideal world. The good news is there are many ways to help our children achieve the daily physical exercise our children need and several ways to expose our children to a diet our children enjoy. Where do we start, you may ask: start with yourself, model a healthy lifestyle. Parents that choose a playful outlook on life are physically active daily and eat a well-balanced diet giving their children a great start in life. Invite your children as early as possible to play; play at home, play at the playground, and play every opportunity you get. Visit not only your local playground as often as possible, but seek out other playgrounds in or near your community. In Takoma Park, Maryland where I reside, our play committee, now the non-
profit Let’s Play America Ltd., created a Guide to Takoma Park Playgrounds. We have fourteen playgrounds in our community. We asked Dean Paris, owner of Paris Design, to put together this Guide. You can click here [http://letsplayamer-
22 PLAY AND PLAYGROUND MAGAZINE SPRING 2017
ica.org/takoma-park-playgrounds/] to see the map of Takoma Park showing all the playgrounds and a description of each play space. Many parents have told me they aim to walk or bike to every playground. Grandparents tell me
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the map has helped them discover play spaces they never would have known about if we didn’t provide this Guide. Does your community have a guide for your playgrounds? If so, use it and visit every playground, and if you don’t have a guide, consider creating one. Where do your children spend their day while you are working? Whether you work from home or outside the home, it doesn’t matter. This applies to parents of children at any age. If you are fortunate, your child gets built-in physical playtime on their way to school, during the day, or after school. If it is all three, you are doing your children a great service. How might you strive to fit in physically active playtime three times a day? Getting your children to school can be a tall hurdle, but if your children know they get to walk to school and if they get there early enough, they will get to play with their friends before school starts, you have a wonderful incentive to get them moving and out the door. This may or may not work for your family, but it is worth trying to make it fit into your schedule. Kids who have the opportunity to run around outside and burn off energy before they sit down for most of the day are ready to focus. I highly suggest you give this a try. Back to where your child spends their day. If you drive them to school or they take the bus like many children do, when they arrive at school, is there time for them be physically active outside? Kudos to you and the school if this is possible. I wish every child had recess where they have several opportunities to play and be physically active with their friends. If this is not happening in your child’s life, I recommend you gather the other parents and speak to the PTA, the administrators, and those who make the rules. The evidence shows all children need a break from sitting, need social time with their friends, and need to recharge their batteries by getting a chance to go outside and play. Most children do not equate physical play with exercise. I know I didn’t as a child, but what I did know was that I had a deep need and desire to go outside and play. If there is a chance your children can ride their bikes to school, walk with friends, walk to the bus, or play at the playground before and after school, they are gaining some valuable physical www.playgroundprofessionals.com/magazine
Ask The Play Lady What play benefits do playgrounds bring to children? Children of all ages strengthen their large motor skills by climbing, jumping, running, sliding, and swinging. What is so great about these skills is children don’t equate playing with exercise, at least young children don’t think about strengthening their bodies, they just go to the playground to play. Most playgrounds are outside, so children get the added benefit of fresh air when they go to a playground. Playgrounds vary in size and scope. At most playgrounds children have the freedom to run, skip, and play until they decide to move on to something else. Playgrounds offer a chance for children to work on their social skills, which I bet children are not thinking about when they meet a new friend at the playground. Both of my children when they were young loved going to playgrounds. My son Alex would try out every jungle gym, slide, and swing and then start all over again. Sarah, who is two and a half years younger, would do everything she could to keep up with her big brother. They played together and they met new kids and played with them. The beauty of playgrounds is they entice children to play and to challenge themselves. They contemplate how high they are willing to climb the monkey bars. Jumping off platforms, retaining walls, and apparatus children can climb that will compel them to jump off is a great opportunity for children to figure out what they can do and what they can’t do. Joan Almon, a founding member of the Alliance for Childhood, talks about risky play. www.alianceforchildhood.org. I believe risky play is something all children need and deserve. Children need to push themselves; they don’t need adults to challenge them when it comes to play. When children observe
other children going on a zipline or the monkey bars at a playground, they ponder, sometimes consciously and sometimes unconsciously, whether this is something they want to try? If your child asks you to help them with the monkey bars and you are able, I highly suggest you spot them. After several tries, your child and you start to know if they can handle the monkey bars by themselves. I loved pulling myself up as a child and going from one bar to another. I believe those opportunities helped me feel confident, and I know they helped me have a strong upper body. Some children are not built for the monkey bars, but what they are good at is hanging and swinging. This skill also builds upper body strength. Parents, you know your child best. If they want to try something at the playground, spot them, support them, and praise them for trying something new. Some children can be a little too eager. My daughter Sarah wanted to slide just as much as her brother. She was approximately one and a half when she wanted to climb up a ladder and go down a curly slide. I probably joined her ten times or so until I felt confident she could go on her own. Sarah was small in stature, but sure was mighty. So she began going up and down the slide right behind her big brother Alex. One time I was standing about twenty feet away and another adult started yelling, “Who is watching that baby?” I walked over and said, “I am.” This adult was not too happy with me, but I knew my daughter was fine. Like I said, risky play is good for children.
Hurray for play! Pat Rumbaugh, The Play Lady
SPRING 2017 PLAY AND PLAYGROUND MAGAZINE 23
5 Healthy, Playful Tips Buy a new fruit or vegetable every week when you shop Allow everyone in the family a day to choose what you play Let kids make dinner or at least help cook Invite a family member or friend to play outside Create a new game that requires everyone to be physically active
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activity time also known as good old fashion play. Many parents these days sign their children up for all kinds of specialty classes afterschool and on weekends. Many of these opportunities are an added bonus for your children, but sometimes they are not necessary. Let me point out that these classes are almost always adult-led and they usually cost money. Ask yourself parents, is my child enjoying this class? Are the children getting physical activity? Are the children having fun? Would my child prefer to meet friends at a playground to play what they choose? This may or
may not be an option. Believe me, I understand most parents work outside the home and they need their children to be cared for afterschool, and what better way than a class your children enjoy. The point I want to make is if your children have not had the opportunity to be physically active during the day, then giving them this opportunity after school is a blessing. Children enjoy being around their friends, and if there is a time during the day the children can play outside and play what they choose, this is what we should aim to give them. Having a safe environment, equipment such as a jump
24 PLAY AND PLAYGROUND MAGAZINE SPRING 2017
rope, sidewalk chalk, balls, playground equipment, and hula-hoops, and a place to run around and play tag, this is heaven to children. Back to the school where your children spends their day, are healthy snacks served along with a lunch that is appealing to children, but nutritious? Maybe you pack your children’s snack and lunch; if so, strive to find the balance of providing healthy options for your children, but food they will eat. For some people this is a no brainer; they eat well and they provide their children daily with a variety of healthy options. Parents, you have the biggest influence on your children. When they become teenagers, their friends start gaining on you for influence. Be the parent who invites everyone to go hiking. Offer your kids the chance to invite friends over to prepare a meal. Have fruit and vegetables on hand, humus and other healthy options, so your teens make wise choices. Hopefully, all of you reading this article would love to fit in, play daily, and include healthy eating in your life. Start with yourself; make a goal to be active www.playgroundprofessionals.com/magazine
daily and to eat healthy meals for at least six days a week. Then invite your family to join you by inviting them to play a physical activity you all enjoy. Reach out to your extended family, friends, and your community. For more play options, I encourage you to visit www.letsplayamerica.org. Playgrounds are a great place to play. Become a swinger and stop at a playground and go for a ride. Go ahead and go down the slide with your child or maybe your grandchild. Invite a neighbor to join you on the seesaw. Give yourself the gift of play and have a healthy snack afterwards like a delicious apple, fresh strawberries, or make your own smoothie. You deserve it after all that playtime.
PAT RUMBAUGH Pat has spoken all over the country about the importance of Play. On the LPA website you can see Pat's speaking engagements. Also on that website is the cover of Pat's children's book, Let's Play at the Playground published in 2013. People interested in a copy of Pat’s book can email Pat at theplaylady@gmail.com. The cost is $16 for her to sign the book, write a message to your child, and mail it to you.
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This annual conference brings together leading play researchers, park and recreation professionals, educators, health scientists, landscape architects, designers, planners, business and community leaders, psychologists, physicians and parents from across the country. The three-day event includes keynote and featured speakers, PLAYtalks, PLAY institutes, research symposium, educational sessions, roundtables, grant opportunities, networking, and opportunities for play. Sponsorship opportunities are available. For more information, email usplaycoalition@clemson.edu.
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Bringing Play to Landscapes, Curricula, Programs, Museums and Beyond April 2-5, 2017, Clemson University Clemson, South Carolina 2017 Keynote Speakers & PLAYtalks Matthew Urbanski
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April
Training Courses - Annual Events - Conferences - More PA Recreation and Park Society's 70th Annual "All Inclusive Adventure" 26-29 Conference Topics include: Professional Development, Park Resources, Trails and Facilities, Aquatics, March
Programming, Social Media and Marketing ,Inclusion and Accessibility, and more.
More Information: www.prps.org
April
Hershey Lodge & Convention Center, 325 University Dr. Hershey, PA 17033
National Autism Awareness Month
This year we want to go beyond simply promoting autism awareness to encouraging friends and collaborators to become partners in movement toward acceptance and appreciation.
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April 2-5
2017 Conference on the Value of Play: Where Design Meets Play The three-day event includes keynote and featured speakers, pre-conference play institutes, PLAYtalks, research symposium, educational sessions, roundtables, grant opportunities, networking, and opportunities for play.
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April
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Clemson University, Clemson, SC
National Playground Safety Week
National Playground Safety Week is a time to focus on children's outdoor play environments. A time to pledge to use good judgment when playing. A time for gratitude for all the adults who work tirelessly on maintaining our playgrounds.
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2017 International Children and Nature April Conference and Youth Summit 18-21 Don’t miss the premier international gathering of leaders, advocates and activists from the children and nature movement. More Information: goo.gl/2jpyav
April 22
Earth Day
The fight for a clean environment continues in a climate of increasing urgency, as the ravages of climate change become more manifest every day. We invite you to be a part of Earth Day.
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May
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From the Play & Playground Encyclopedia
Research over 630 listings of play and playground related companies, organizations, events, books, magazines, safety, people and blogs.
Exercise www.pgpedia.com/e/exercise
Physical exercise is the performance of some activity in order to develop or maintain physical fitness and overall health. 1 For children, exercise is playing and being physically active. The American Heart Association recommends that children have at least 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous aerobic activity every day. 2 Children who get adequate exercise each day are more likely to maintain a healthy weight; build stronger muscles, bones, and joints; lower blood pressure and blood cholesterol levels; and decrease the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. 3 Other benefits for children include feeling less stressed, being more alert in school, sleeping better at night, and having an overall better perception about themselves. 4 Three elements of exercise can be seen while children play: endurance, when playing tag; strength, when hanging from the monkey bars; and flexibility, when bending down to tie their shoes. Aerobic exercise, which increases the heart rate, develops endurance as children run for continuous periods of time playing games or riding their bicycles. Climbing activities and brachiating on overhead equipment especially build upper body strength. Flexibility is improved in activities that involve stretching, such as doing a cartwheel. 5 A primary reason for encouraging children to play actively outdoors is to encourage a lifelong healthy habit of physical activity. 6 Because children are becoming more sedentary watching television and playing video games, the percentage of overweight children has more than doubled over the past 30 years. 7 It has been found that the number of hours per day children are involved in these sedentary activities can be directly linked to childhood obesity. 8 The American Academy of www.playgroundprofessionals.com/magazine
Pediatrics recommends that children 2 years and older be limited to no more than 1-2 hours of quality programming a day on all screen media (television, electronic games, DVD’s, and computer time outside of school). The Society of Health and Physical Educators (SHAPE America) also recommends that schoolage children should not be inactive for periods longer than 2 hours at a time. 9 Guidelines for the amount of exercise recommended by SHAPE America include planned physical activity as well as unstructured free play. Toddlers should have a minimum of 30 minutes of planned play and 60 minutes of free play every day. Preschoolers should have 60 minutes each of planned play and free play daily. 10 School-age children need at least 60 minutes of physical activity a day, which can be broken up into segments of 15 minutes or more, as time allows. 11 Since the No Child Left Behind Act was signed into law in 2002, many schools have decreased or eliminated recess to concentrate more on in-class teaching time in an effort to boost children’s test scores. An increased amount of homework also adds to increased sedentary activity at home. 12 In addition, less time has been devoted to fitness activity in physical education classes, where children receive instruction on health, motion, and sports games. 13 In 1956 when it was reported that America’s children were less fit than European children, the President's Council on Youth Fitness was founded to encourage American children to be healthy and active. This government organization is now known as the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition (PCFSN). Its mission is to engage, educate, and empower all Americans to adopt a healthy lifestyle with regular physical activity and good nutrition. 14 A comprehensive schoolbased program offers educators free access to a health-related assessment for youth fitness, professional development for meaningful implementation, and motivational recognition to empower students to adopt and maintain an active lifestyle. 15
With the rising concern of childhood obesity in America, many other organizations have partnered to tackle the problem. NFL Play 60 is a campaign of the National Football League designed to get children active through a fourweek program that inspires children to get the recommended 60 minutes of physical activity a day in school and at home. 16 Footnotes
1. “Physical exercise.” ScienceDaily. < https:// www.sciencedaily.com/terms/physical_exercise. htm > 31 Jan. 2017. 2. “The AHA’s Recommendations for Physical Activity in Children.” American Heart Association. < http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/ HealthyLiving/HealthyKids/ActivitiesforKids/ The-AHAs-Recommendations-for-PhysicalActivity-in-Children_UCM_304053_Article. jsp#.WJDJWFMrKUk > 31 Jan. 2017. 3. "Kids and Exercise." KidsHealth from Nemours. < http://kidshealth.org/en/parents/ exercise.html?WT.ac=ctg#catstaying-fit > 31 Jan. 2017. 4. “6 ‘Bests’ About Kids’ Exercise.” NIH MedlinePlus. < http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ magazine/issues/winter09/articles/winter09pg6. html > 31 Jan. 2017. 5. Op. cit., “Kids and Exercise.” 6. Frost, Joe L., Pei-San Brown, John A. Sutterby, Candra D. Thornton, The Developmental Benefits of Playgrounds. (Olney, MD: Association for Childhood Education International, 2004) p. 130. 7. Op. cit., “Kids and Exercise.” 8. Op. cit., Frost, Joe L., Pei-San Brown, John A. Sutterby, Candra D. Thornton, p. 38. 9. "Physical Activity for Children." SHAPE America. < http://www.shapeamerica.org/standards/ guidelines/pa-children-5-12.cfm > 31 Jan. 2017. 10. "Active Start." SHAPE America. < http://www. shapeamerica.org/standards/guidelines/activestart.cfm > 31 Jan. 2017. 11. Op. cit., "Physical Activity for Children." 12. Op. cit., Frost, Joe L., Pei-San Brown, John A. Sutterby, Candra D. Thornton, p. 39. 13. Op. cit., Frost, Joe L., Pei-San Brown, John A. Sutterby, Candra D. Thornton, p. 44. 14. President’s Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition. < http://www.fitness.gov/> 15. “Presidential Youth Fitness Program.” President’s Council on Fitness, Sports & Nutrition. < https://www.fitness.gov/participate-inprograms/presidential-youth-fitness-program/ > 31 Jan. 2017. 16. “NFL Play 60 Challenge.” American Heart Association. < http://www.heart.org/ HEARTORG/Educator/FortheClassroom/ Play60Challenge/PLAY-60-Challenge_ UCM_304278_Article.jsp#.WJDQ1VMrKUk > 31 Jan. 2017.
SPRING 2017 PLAY AND PLAYGROUND MAGAZINE 29
PLAYGROUND MAINTENANCE TECHNICIAN TRAINING The two-day Playground Maintenance Technician Training focuses on practical playground maintenance activities, inspection principles and best practices in making repairs. This program does not focus on play theory or memorizing standards.
Participant Benefits • Learn about materials! Learn how to maintain playground equipment made of metal, plastic, wood and concrete • Learn about safety! Understand how to take damaged equipment out of service safely, keep proper records, and identify potential legal issues related to playground maintenance • Learn about surfaces! Learn how best to maintain unitary and loose-fill surfaces as well as fasteners and connectors • Cost effective! Train front-line maintenance staff at an affordable price • Ensure your equipment lasts through its useful life! Improve playground user safety and prolong the useful life of equipment
Upcoming Playground Maintenance Technician Programs • March 28-29, 2017 – Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, College Park, MD • September 18-19, 2017 – Florida School Plant Managers Association, Orlando, FL • October 2-3, 2017 – City of Spokane Parks and Recreation, Spokane, WA • October 5-6, 2017 – Oregon Recreation and Park Association, Spring Field, OR Want to host a PMT program in your area? Contact the Program Coordinator at the Eppley Institute pmt@eppley.org Find out more at
www.playgroundmaintenance.org
30 PLAY AND PLAYGROUND MAGAZINE SPRING 2017
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Edge
from page 7
machines, but this gym is different. The climbing gym may not be a new idea, and larger urban areas around the US are sure to have big indoor facilities too, but for our area this is big news. All across the US, we have seen a trend toward fitness resulting in an ever-expanding idea of what a gym is, or could be. (Insert here about 200 words building up on all the specific things The Edge has to offer like food and drink, meeting areas? Private party rentals, classes on climbing, fitness, etc. – whatever you can find out about. This is largely just filler to get a decent sized article built. Then you can wrap the article by coming back to you hanging there by your finger tips in the paragraph below.) -Good place for Ammon to help with any info Ive missed, and some details which i know i have missed. Many think of climbing as an outdoor sport that requires expensive gear, extreme know-how, life-threatening exposure, and certain risk — all those things that prevented me from becoming an avid climber. But here at The Edge, this is changing. I can experience that same rush, get a small taste of the primal fear intrinsic to sheer-face free climbing, but safely, among a group of well-trained and talented athletes. All the while being warm, dry, and in a completely controlled environment. So there I am, still clinging to that left hand grip, resting on my right leg toe-hold, really feeling the burn now, and now, twenty-four feet up The Wall, now I think that if I miss the next grip and fall, the automatic belay will catch and hold, and I can rest for a minute as I swing from the rope and plan my reset onto the wall. I think for a minute how good that will feel – to swing and relax, just for a minute. But honestly, a big part of the fun here is the desire to beat this wall and the hard work of trying to www.playgroundprofessionals.com/magazine
do it. So no, I’m not going to give in, and I look around, above and to the sides, to find the next grip. My left hand is getting tired and sweaty and I know I’ve got to switch my holds to give my hand a brief rest. And then – there it is! A 10-foot path of three grips and two foot holds, taking me to the 40-foot level and the top just a little further on. "Yeah! That’s what I’m looking for!" I plan the initial move – push off with my right leg and use some friction with my raised left foot to get a little extra motion. A quick, hard pull with my left hand and I’ll have my right onto the first grip. “OK”, I say to myself, “this’ll work.” I fix my eyes on the next right-hand grip, about two feet beyond my reach, pull my strength together for the push…. “OK” I say to myself again, “One, Two, Three and GO . . . !” Gyms are changing, and with it, my desire to experience the real outdoor version. But for now, The Edge climbing gym will be my launching pad into a whole new type of adventure as I have lots to learn about this sport and hobby. Plus, I would be crazy to be climbing in the frigid tundra that Eastern Idaho has become this time of year! I hope the ice climbers are reading this! The Play and Playground Magazine would like to wish our editor Aaron Hamilton luck as he pursues a new path in his career. Thank you for your contribution to the legacy of this publication!
SPRING 2017 PLAY AND PLAYGROUND MAGAZINE 31
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