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Email a Friendits funny how common sense so often needs “studies” to confirm it.
its true - playgrounds with “safe” toys (and no see-saws! or merrygorounds!) aren’t any fun!
Playing It Safe May Not Be Safe
Posted by Rebecca Teti in News on Friday, July 22, 2011 10:00 AM
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Here’s another child development theory telling us the opposite of what the previous child development theory said; take it with salt or salt-substitute as your favorite diet study suggests.
I find I’m most persuaded by theories that confirm my own thoughts on the matter, so I like this one.
It suggests that today’s playgrounds, where the slides and monkey bars are removed, are so “safe” they inhibit child development.
Even if children do suffer fewer physical injuries — and the evidence for that is debatable — the critics say that these playgrounds may stunt emotional development, leaving children with anxieties and fears that are ultimately worse than a broken bone.
The point is that children actually need risk to develop properly: they can’t overcome fears without exposure to them.
After observing children on playgrounds in Norway, England and Australia, Dr. Sandseter identified six categories of risky play: exploring heights, experiencing high speed, handling dangerous tools, being near dangerous elements (like water or fire), rough-and-tumble play (like wrestling), and wandering alone away from adult supervision. The most common is climbing heights.
“Climbing equipment needs to be high enough, or else it will be too boring in the long run,” Dr. Sandseter said. “Children approach thrills and risks in a progressive manner, and very few children would try to climb to the highest point for the first time they climb. The best thing is to let children encounter these challenges from an early age, and they will then progressively learn to master them through their play over the years.”
Of course sometimes kids will get hurt, but Sandseter says playground injuries are rarely lasting, and actually prevent phobias.
While some psychologists— and many parents — have worried that a child who suffered a bad fall would develop a fear of heights, studies have shown the opposite pattern: A child who’s hurt in a fall before the age of 9 is less likely as a teenager to have a fear of heights.
In fact, psychologists treat adult phobias by gradual risk exposure, mimicking the way children gradually begin to conquer their environment through play. Some experts think preventing risky play may actually cause fearful adults.
“Paradoxically,” the psychologists write, “we posit that our fear of children being harmed by mostly harmless injuries may result in more fearful children and increased levels of psychopathology.”
They also claim the move to softer surfaces and shorter slides has not necessarily prevented injuries.
“There is no clear evidence that playground safety measures have lowered the average risk on playgrounds,” said David Ball, a professor of risk management at Middlesex University in London. He noted that the risk of some injuries, like long fractures of the arm, actually increased after the introduction of softer surfaces on playgrounds in Britain and Australia.
I have nothing against wood chips or the recycled tire padding they tend to put down on playgrounds in our neck of the woods, and I’ll even go on record saying the end of the metal slide which heats to blazing in sunlight is a good thing.
It’s good to be reminded of the need for moderation in all things, even parental protectiveness, though. You can’t grow a muscle without lifting a weight.
Comments
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Posted by Kallie on Friday, Jul 22, 2011 11:04 AM (EDT):
The playground in the picture you posted looks fine to me - I don’t mind the plastic slides, especially in the Texas heat, and it looks like it has monkey bars. That’s how many of the ones in our town are, and I think they’re great. It’s been so neat to see that progressive risk-taking in action in my little quietly-determined 2.5-year-old. He took a tumble off a higher slide last year that still gives me minor heart attacks to think about, but after awhile of staying away from that slide, he can now do it with confidence.
Posted by Carolyn A on Friday, Jul 22, 2011 11:32 AM (EDT):
That probably explains why so many kids climb on the outside of the tunnel slides trying to reach maximum heights! My biggest problem with the plastic slides is you can’t speed them up with waxed paper like the good old metal slides.
One thing I really lament being lost most is the high dive. One pool around here has one grandfathered dive, but every else, low dive only. Where’s the challenge?
Posted by Ellie on Saturday, Jul 23, 2011 11:48 AM (EDT):
Probably the problem with the diving boards is that many of the kids just jump off without looking to see it there is anyone below where they would be entering the water. We had diving boards at the pools I went to as a child and many times I was jumped on when the next kid jumped in because I was not out of the way (quickly enough - I was not playing in the area) of where they would land and they did not even look to see if someone was still there. I was lucky not too be hurt badly but if the kid landed on the one in the water just the right way they could be hurt very seriously and possibly knocked unconcious or causing other serious injury. Even though these were life guard monitored pools they obviously couldn’t see everything happening at all times. I’m guessing that there have been a significant amount of injuries that have lead to lawsuits that untimately lead to the diving boards being removed.
There is a lack of supervision in alot of those fast food play areas. They are supposed to be for the younger children but many times there are kids in there that are too old to be in there and they just push past the younger children and it does no good to bring this to the attention of the manager of the restaurant as they will not do anything to enforce the age restrictions that are posted by the entry door. Those play areas are great for the children that are the appropriate age to be in them and it is obvious that they enjoy playing in them but they need to be supervised and many times I have seen 2 - 3 year olds in these play areas and they have no parent inside watching them.
Posted by Pennsylvania Mom on Friday, Jul 22, 2011 12:25 PM (EDT):
Where are the playgrounds with no slides and monkey bars? Is this only a problem in New York City, or are they banned in other places? Please share your experiences about your local playgrounds.
I am really interested in your local experiences. I assumed all playgrounds were like our local ones, which do have slides and monkey bars. Some are very tall—probably at least ten feet, maybe more—much taller than this 5’9” mom. One local park even has an old school merry-go-round.
Posted by Claire on Friday, Jul 22, 2011 2:46 PM (EDT):
I honestly don’t know what the author of this article is talking about. The playgrounds in my area (Albany NY) have all kids of fun equipment, much more extensive than anything I had growing up. There are both metal and plastic slides, slides with and without tunnels, and some very high. There are perfectly high climbers and monkey bars, and a much greater variety than what was available when I was a kid. There are traditional swings as well as baby swings and more interesting swings than what I grew up with. (My only complaint is that some of the playgrounds in my area hang the swings way too high, so my son can’t get onto them without my help, and I would feel safer if they were closer to the ground the way they were when I was a kid.) The teeter totters at the local playgrounds are safer than the ones I grew up with, but also more fun. My son at age 3.5 has mastered skill on the playground way beyond anything I achieved at that age, because I didn’t have exposure to the equipment that he has at his fingertips. And it has been a huge confidence booster for him. I don’t think there’s anything wrong about a rule against running on playground equipment. The kids who I see running on the equipment are not watching where they’re going, and they end up knocking other kids over. Yes, I understand that kids need to run around. But that doesn’t give them the right to disregard other (and often smaller) kids on the ramps leading up to the slides, etc. I think running should occur at parts of the park where people aren’t in the path of the person who is running.
Posted by Monica (momof2) on Saturday, Jul 23, 2011 6:47 AM (EDT):
I am with you. The playgrounds around here are WAY funner than the ones around where I grew up. The stuff today has tunnels, slides of different heights, and all kinds of different do-dads. There is also an all wood “castle” jungle gym with lots of places to hide and suspension bridges that rock, and a sand box. One playground even has an a super high slide but safer than the one my brother broke his arm falling off. I totally do not accept this idea that you can’t make a relatively safe jungle gym that is fun. No jungle gym is 100% safe. Life isn’t 100% safe. But you can design structures that minimize common safetly problems and maximize fun.
Posted by Maria on Friday, Jul 22, 2011 3:40 PM (EDT):
I’m with PA mom on this one—probably because I live in PA 
Our playgrounds are just like the ones I grew up with—who has the super safe ones?
Posted by Claire on Friday, Jul 22, 2011 4:51 PM (EDT):
Wow, that really surprises me. I guess it must be a regional thing. I’ve been to playgrounds on Cape Cod and NYC, as well as my region, and I’ve never seen any that fit this description. The one we went to on Cape Cod was awesome! It was wooden, had playhouses and ships, as well as lots of fun climbers, etc. I feel really sorry for kids who live in areas without fun playgrounds. If that was the case for me, I would seriously consider getting a really nice swingset for our backyard. My son tends to be cautious physically, as well as in other areas, so playgrounds have been a huge asset to us, to build his self-confidence and bring him out of his comfort zone.
Posted by Claire on Friday, Jul 22, 2011 5:54 PM (EDT):
But even that one on Cape Cod had vertical features, too. I can’t remember how high the slides were, but the monkey bars and climbers were reasonable heights, and the swings were normal. I agree, kids need those vertical opportunities just as much as the horizontal ones. I’m all for safety (I would never complain about the safe surface of playgrounds, or a nice canopy to shield the sun, and I certainly won’t complain if my son never has a high fall, regardless of what the article says). But we can’t shelter our kids from everything. If we try to, we could potentially make them neurotic.
Posted by Mary Beth on Saturday, Jul 23, 2011 2:51 PM (EDT):
I’m from Pa also and in our town the parks have a mixture of older equipment and newer ones. In the one park there is this very old tower that is the place most of the kids want to be. Kids have been signing it for many years so it’s apart of our towns history. I think in smaller towns who really don’t have the money for fancy new rides the old ones will be around much longer.
We recently moved from California to Utah. California is aweful—laws about everything, and everyone is scared to death of liability issues. Our city removed all the swings from city parks because swings are, apparently, too risky. I think the risk is lawsuits…
Posted by SusanP on Friday, Jul 22, 2011 7:32 PM (EDT):
I grew up jumping on trampolines, water skiing, riding motorcycles with a football helmet, riding bikes without helmets, double jumping on trampolines into a pool(!), and nothing ever happened to me. I have never broken a bone in my body. My daughter, on the other hand, was jumping on a trampoline when she was 7, snapped her femur and ended up in a body cast for 2 weeks, followed by an external fixator, physical therapy, private tutoring at home, two surgeries, etc. So you never know. Some people are just plain lucky. That being said, I allow all my kids to jump on trampolines, except for her.
Posted by loving playgrounds on Friday, Jul 22, 2011 7:51 PM (EDT):
The playgrounds near us in the northeast are awesome and amazing places for kids to explore. I never had anything remotely close to it growing up. I’ve spent much time over the years exploring playgrounds in different towns and it was always an adventure. A little nerve racking at times with a risk taker.
In gym at school the kids climb ropes to the ceiling, unknotted and knotted. That is risk taking to me. We had this growing up but I could never do to the unknotted rope—not strong enough. The climbing walls also are something I did not have growing up.
I do see a trend in schools to have some things taken away at recess. I understand stricter rules are sometimes needed with a large crowd or because something happened. My son was trying to be superman in first grade and was swinging high and jumped off the swing and as a result got a compound fracture. It was pretty serious and it made sense to me that they needed a rule for “no playing superman on the swing!!”
I did not read the article linked. Is it possible that the playgrounds mentioned were ones that were frequently used by unsupervised kids? Was the town/city facing law suits? Maybe they were forced into simplicity over insurance issues. I can understand the rising level of legal concern because unfortunately Americans sue for everything.
As for pools, the loss of diving boards has been a bummer. No one has diving boards anymore in public pools and it is all about law suits and insurance costs.
Posted by Claire on Friday, Jul 22, 2011 9:40 PM (EDT):
It’s looking like this is definitely not an issue in the northeast. So far we’ve had commenters describe great playgrounds in Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania and the northeast in general. I wonder why the discrepancy between playgrounds in the northeast vs other parts of the country that have been mentioned here, such as California? It makes me glad that I live where I do!
Posted by Christina on Saturday, Jul 23, 2011 1:59 AM (EDT):
Do any parks have teeter-totters (or see-saws) anymore? I haven’t seen one of those since I was a kid. I had so much fun on them and wish that my kids could experience them as well. Something else I would like to see is a merry-go-round. I know some older parks have them, but have never seen one in a newer park.
Posted by Claire on Saturday, Jul 23, 2011 6:58 AM (EDT):
Our playgrounds have teeter-totters. They’re safer and more fun than the ones I grew up with (where it was really hard for one kid to get off without sending the other kid flying). I do miss the merry-go-rounds on the playgrounds. I haven’t seen any since my son’s arrival. It’s too bad, because he would love them.
Posted by Becky Le on Saturday, Jul 23, 2011 9:35 AM (EDT):
I am in Northern Virginia and almost none of our playgrounds have see saws. The ones that do are so low to the ground that anyone over 5 is probably not going to find it very fun. The one last remaining merry go round was just taken out of our local state park. :(
I find it interesting that so many of the posters that love their playgrounds seem to have younger children. One of the reasons you don’t see older kids on playgrounds much anymore is because 1. the equipment (no matter what it says on the side) is only really interesting to kids 7 and under and 2. the older kids are treated as if they are a nuisance. No wonder our kids don’t enjoy “old fashioned” play time anymore.
I’m also surprised this is the first time so many people have heard of this issue. I remember a series of articles about this bubble approach to playgrounds (and childhood) from when my oldest kids were little over 6 years ago.
I have so many fond memories of the playgrounds of my youth. My school had 3 great palygrounds with swings and monkey bars (over asphalt, gasp!) that we hung upside down on, geodesic domes, play houses and HUGE sandboxes. It had things to crawl in, on and run around and there were trees were actually allowed to climb! One even had a tree house. We spent hours in those trees pretending to be pirates, aliens and all sorts of other fantastical things. I can’t imagine a school within a thousand miles of me that would allow such things now. :(
Posted by Claire on Saturday, Jul 23, 2011 9:51 AM (EDT):
The playgrounds in my area have really high climbers and monkey bars that are more appropriate for older kids. My son uses this equipment now, but only because we help him. He would never be able to use it on his own. And there are plenty of big kids who come to the playgrounds here. My only issue with them is when they run up the ramps really fast and bump into the little kids. They have the right to use the equipment, but that doesn’t give them the right to disregard others. Monica, who posted below my original post, has older kids. I really think this is a regional thing. It seems like some parts of the country have boring playgrounds probably due to liability. I hope that doesn’t spread to our area. I would much rather see my son continue to engage in active and unstructured ways as he gets older, rather than engage in sedentary activities.
Posted by Meredith on Saturday, Jul 23, 2011 7:00 AM (EDT):
Rebecca’s closing comment sums it up for me: moderation in all things! I agree that risk-taking is part of growing up but for me as a parent it can no longer include “wandering alone.” We just don’t live in a world where that’s possible for me anymore. (And I lament that fact.) As for our playground equipment here it’s a mix of plastic, wood, some bizarre rubber flooring and one that they even put some anti-fungus growing AstroTurf (yeah, seriously). There are different levels of difficulty and my three-year-old has always used the equipment of a higher “level.” I don’t see her little brother being any different. I seems to me that my kids and the kids I watch find ways to make even the easiest “stunts” more challenging. And I don’t see that as a bad thing.
Posted by Meredith on Saturday, Jul 23, 2011 7:06 AM (EDT):
One last thing: on a recent trip to Germany I did note that the playgrounds we visited were all wood, all metal slides and included a rope “swing”—the child sat on the bottom, you pulled them back and then they went careening down a zip-line. My daughter was afraid to try it… then we couldn’t get her off! : )
Posted by Beth on Saturday, Jul 23, 2011 6:19 PM (EDT):
We should keep in mind that some playground equipment is geared towards younger kids and some towards older. By the age of 11 or 12 most kids are done with playgrounds no matter what they include.
If people would stop suing then maybe towns would not have to be so strict in certain places. People are not out to take fun away or be overly safe. They are doing what they have to to decrease liability. What other motivation would a town have?
And as for studies that say such and such—who is spending the money on this kind of research? “If a kid falls at a playground he is less likely to be afraid of heights later on”—that sounds fishy. You can find a study to prove whatever point you are trying to make.
The state I live in has swimming holes at which you can jump off a high cliff into the water—from what I see there is no shortage of opportunities for risk taking.
There are so many opportunities these days for kids to stretch themselves physically. I grew up in a bluecollar town that had zero for playground fun. Yet my growth is not stunted. I can’t say I think my kids were deprived by lack of metal slide or merry go round.
A see saw would be easy to make right in your own backyard.
I really have such a blast at today’s playgrounds. I’ll be sad when my youngest is done. I guess I can look forward to taking my grandkids.
Posted by Claire on Saturday, Jul 23, 2011 6:37 PM (EDT):
I agree with you Beth, and I’m certainly not going to be upset if my son never falls at a playground! Nor am I going to complain about the safe rubber surface. That won’t interfere with the kids having fun. I also am going to miss the playground experience once my son outgrows it.
I can remember when they started switching the playgrounds to these “safer” play areas. It was so sad. It was in the early 90’s (I was in 2nd grade to show my age) and there was that constant problem of running into other children during recess. With these playgrounds shown above which is common in schools, parks, etc. in IN, NM, and TX (all place I’ve lived) there was no room to run around. You couldn’t explore different areas, such as the jungle gym, swings, two huge slides, and merry go round. Why do the slides, monkey bars, and those lovely drop offs for little ones have to be all meshed together? I am more stressed at playgrounds like this because my little ones can run off the edge, are surrounded by many children, and I have a difficult time getting into them when trying to rescue a scared child!
Posted by Jennifer on Sunday, Jul 24, 2011 10:12 PM (EDT):
I am in NJ & they took swings off our playgrounds. SWINGS!! And the playground that does have swings, only has the baby bucket ones. And they don’t have them on the school playground either. My children don’t know how to pump their legs & swing, we finally got our own backyard set & they are practicing now :( Also my son was at a pre-k that used to be kindergarten/elementary school & they wouldn’t let them play on the equipment b/c it was not “safe” for their age. The kids looked at it all year, but were forbidden to go on & the new safe equipment was delivered the last month of school!
Posted by Monica (momof2) on Monday, Jul 25, 2011 7:19 AM (EDT):
Some things that my boys love that at the newer playgrounds around here that I never had: A very tall “rocket” made entirely of rope ladders; this structure is higher that the school building it is near. Monkey bars that twirl and move making it more challenging to stay on. A modest rock climbing wall. A slide higher (but also safer) than the highest one from my childhood. Suspension bridges. A sort of bicycle pedal you can try to pedal and stay on (nothing to hold on to so it’s really hard). A swinging tire. And yes, we have merry-go-rounds.
Safety and fun are not mutually exclusive UNLESS your child views fun as having to involve risk of physical harm. There are some children like that but most are not. Most kids want physical challenges but don’t demand Russian roulette. I have very active older boys but they don’t have a death wish so they have always enjoyed the playgrounds around here. If your playgrounds aren’t fun then the city needs to fire their designers and hire some more creative ones. It really isn’t difficult.
Posted by Sally on Monday, Jul 25, 2011 12:51 PM (EDT):
Just in case someone’s still reading this, I present the following: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_il1m8NJbDY&feature=youtu.be
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