PLAYGROUNDS
BRACHIATION -
Helping Little Brains Grow Strong
Brachiation is the movement by which primates swing from tree limb to tree limb using only their arms. Put simply it is the form of movement whereby one swings from one arm to the other across overhead equipment – think of a child crossing an overhead monkey bar or gladiator rings – that is brachiation.
So why is brachiation important for school playground equipment? Making the left and right hemispheres of the brain work together in an alternating fashion is critical to the neurological development of children, which is why the act of crawling is so important for infants. Of course, with the exception of the odd crawl tunnel in junior playgrounds, there is little compulsion for school aged children to crawl. This is where brachiation comes in – swinging hand over hand from one rung to another makes the brain work in the same way. We are quite fortunate in New Zealand that “upper body equipment” is included
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in nearly every school playground and the vast majority of public playgrounds – be it the plain over-head ladder or the more dynamic spinning rings. In fact, this is almost considered a requirement of playgrounds in New Zealand, this is not the case in the European playgrounds and especially the UK.
What does this mean for children in New Zealand school playgrounds? Crossing an overhead ladder from one side to the other is hard work – go out to your playground and give it a go, if you haven’t been on the monkey bars for a few years you will soon see what we mean.
