Playground Equipment
Since the 1930s, thousands of play grounds have been built to provide
safe, secure areas of play for kids to develop and just "have fun."
But how safe are our kids? According to the United States Consumer Product
Safety Commission (CPSC) statistics, nearly 205,860 playground-related
injuries requiring emergency room visits occur each year. Approximately
156,040 of those injuries occur on public play grounds.
A key to many of those injuries is the fact that numerous kids are playing
on equipment not designed for their age. Thus, the steps or railings may
be too far apart or require additional strength and coordination causing
kids to fall or trip. According to CPSC statistics regarding playground
injuries to preschool-age kids (under 5 years), approximately 40% of all
injuries involved climbers.
Most injuries related to age inappropriateness involve kids ages 0 - 4
playing on equipment designed for kids ages 5 - 12. However, older kids
should not play on equipment designed for younger kids. Equipment that
is too small may not be developmentally challenging and may create hazards
by having small steps or narrow spaces.
The National Program for Playground Safety recommends that parents be
proactive in selecting age appropriate equipment and requesting separate
play areas for different age groups -- ages 2 to 5 and 5 to 12. These
areas should be marked by signage indicating the age-appropriate areas.
Parents and other interested adults are not expected to become trained
playground equipment inspectors, but they can review equipment to be sure
that it is appropriately designed for the age levels and needs of the
kids using the equipment.
Please consider the following factors when selecting age-appropriate equipment
in order to help make America's play grounds safer.
Playground equipment should foster appropriate physical development and
be scaled accordingly
Kids are developmentally different in size and ability. Most kids ages
2 - 5 are smaller, weaker, less coordinated and have a higher center of
gravity than 5 - 12 year olds. Thus, they need smaller steps and crawl
spaces. Hands require smaller grips and bodies require appropriately placed
railings on platforms. On the whole, playground equipment for 2 - 5 year
olds should be designed lower to the ground.
Keep in mind, play grounds should physically challenge all kids. Older
kids should be encouraged to use overhead and horizontal bars because
they have greater arm development and strength. However, the same pieces
are not appropriate for 2 - 5 year olds.
Remember for all kids on all equipment, there should be no spaces 3 1/2"
to 9" where heads or bodies could become trapped.
Play grounds also can facilitate other areas of physical development.
They can stimulate senses with different textures and contrasts in color.
They can help develop dynamic balance by providing smaller kids with small
ramps or steps and school-aged kids with rope and chain ladders, bridges
and balance beams.
Appropriate play areas for kids ages 2 - 5 could include: areas to crawl;
low platforms with multiple access such as ramps and ladders; ramps with
pieces attached for grasping; low tables for sand, water and manipulation
of materials; tricycle paths with various textures; flexible spring rockers;
sand areas with covers; and shorter slides (usually no taller than 4').
Developmentally appropriate play areas for kids ages 5 - 12 could include:
rope or chain climbers on angles; climbing pieces; horizontal bars; cooperative
pieces such as tire swings, merry-go-rounds, see-saws; slides and sliding
poles; open spaces to run and play ball; and semi-enclosed structures
to promote fantasy play and socializing.
Play grounds should help ensure positive emotional development
Under good supervision, well-designed and appropriately-used play grounds
can help create positive emotional development for kids. Equipment such
as appropriately sized slides and swings encourage kids to experiment
and stretch their bodies and emotions to new limits. Appropriately designed
play grounds allow younger kids to explore new methods of playing and
to take qualified risks. Parents can help nurture positive emotional development
by observing, supervising, facilitating and complimenting, but not directly
interfering unless there is a safety problem.
Playground equipment should help provide social development
Play grounds may be one of the first social experiences for some kids.
Good play areas offer kids opportunities to play alone or with other kids.
The playground should allow younger kids to easily manipulate items, explore
spaces and begin to interact with others. Suggested equipment for play
areas for kids ages 2 - 5 should offer both single and multi-child use.
Appropriate equipment may be single-use equipment such as spring rocking
animals or tot swings and more social pieces such as multi-user spring
rockers, sand boxes or age-appropriate slides.
Play grounds for school-aged kids should continue to encourage social
growth with equipment for single and multi-users such as swings, slides
and climbers. Some equipment for 5 - 12 year olds should encourage cooperation.
Examples could include tire swings, merry-go-rounds, seesaws and special
manipulative equipment that requires more than one user.
Individual pieces of equipment (with the exception of swings that need
to be located away from high traffic areas) often can be placed adjacent
to one another or attached to other pieces. Close proximity encourages
kids to move from piece to piece and gives them opportunities to interact.
Kids of all ages can develop social skills by working together to maintain
their play areas. Tricycles and other loose equipment should be used and
placed in designated areas. Kids can help pick up trash and push into
place loose-fill surfaces such as sand, pea gravel and wood chips that
has been displaced by use.
Play areas should provide intellectual development
Play grounds are a fun way for kids to develop intellectually. Play grounds
offer opportunities to learn problem solving skills, to explore, to manipulate
items and to discover new ways to get off and on equipment. Exploration
areas include nature trails, large composite structures and play houses.
Manipulative equipment includes sand boxes, sand diggers, water-wheels,
merry-go-rounds, construction materials and special items that turn. Age-appropriate
areas offer younger kids smaller, safer and more secure methods of getting
off and on the equipment like slides, steps or slight ramps. School-age
kids should have more advanced methods of getting off equipment like poles,
horizontal ladders or flexible bridges to challenge their problem solving
abilities.
Play areas should provide accessibility and play opportunities for all
kids
With the 1991 passage of the American with Disabilities Act, many play
areas are being planned or modified to give kids with disabilities an
opportunity to play on play equipment with other kids. The Recreation
Advisory Committee of the U.S. Architectural and Transportation Barriers
Compliance Board has guidelines on accessibility and playground equipment.
The guidelines specify the minimum level of accessibility required in
the construction and alteration of play areas covered by the law. For
further information, contact the Access Board at www.access-board.gov.
Play areas should offer some stable paths paved with engineered wood fiber,
rubber mats or other accessible material to access wheelchairs. Transfer
stations on equipment will aid physically-challenged kids to get off and
on equipment. Five-foot wide paths, wheelchair parking spaces adjacent
to the play structures, wider platforms and walkways will help kids using
wheelchairs. Using different textures and colors for paths and hand rails
can help visually-impaired kids.
Examples of age-appropriate equipment
This chart is for consideration only, it is not an extensive list.
*This information was compiled by the National Program for Playground Safety, University of Northern Iowa (1996, statistics submitted for publication). All statistics are based on data obtained from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission's (CPSC) National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS). NEISS collects only playground product-related injuries that are recorded in more than 90 hospital emergency departments located throughout the U.S. Thus, only emergency room injuries are recorded, and the national statistics are estimates.