The humble school playground is essential; a rite of passage for many. Friendships are made there; secrets are shared, and games played. But did you know that playgrounds are more than just a play area for children?
Why are playgrounds important to have in schools?
Playgrounds are crucial for children as they help them develop essential life skills, habits, and attitudes they will carry with them throughout their life.
In recent years, attitudes towards playgrounds have shifted as parents, teachers, and others focus on improving academics. In some cases, children are spending more time “playing” online games.
However, it could be argued that playgrounds have gained increasing importance for children as they offer a wealth of benefits that will complement their educational and technological learning experiences. Playgrounds mean going outside, getting active, and interacting with others face to face, all of which are limited in the classroom or online.
What are some of the benefits of school playgrounds?
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Grow young minds and self-confidence
School playgrounds provide children with an environment where they can engage in unstructured play. This enables them to use their imagination, which flows on to help the development of their emotional, social, and creative thinking skills, which are critical for performance in the classroom as well.
Using their imagination and “free play”, children can build self-confidence—an essential life skill and one that may be harder to harness in a classroom environment. With “free play”, children may come across a physical obstacle that might frighten them at first, but by seeing other kids tackling these physical obstacles and the enjoyment on their faces, each child experiments with their own approach. This example highlights how important playgrounds are for self-confidence development.
Classrooms, while essential for learning, may sometimes create a mental barrier for some children as they feel they may not be able to harness self-confidence in a more formal setting. Playgrounds offer the perfect middle ground as a more relaxed environment for children to experiment with their self-confidence and reduce the pressure they may feel in a classroom setting.
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Understand and develop social skills
School playgrounds are the perfect environment to help children understand social norms and develop their own growing social skills. School playgrounds offer the perfect relaxed environment to make a new friend, play with others, and learn what is and is not acceptable in a group setting.
While social skills can be taught in a literal sense in the classroom, learning them, and applying them in the more informal setting of the playground is instrumental to their development.
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Keep active
A more obvious benefit of school playgrounds is to encourage physical activity during lunch breaks. While running around the oval at lunch and playing imaginary games in the grass is enjoyable, the addition of structures such as monkey bars, seesaws and slides add another dimension of activity and fun to lunchtime that allow kids to test their boundaries, experiment and burn off energy.
Outdoor play is so important for the healthy physical development of children and works to improve their flexibility, balance, and motor skills. Playground equipment can help children learn how to control their movements and trust their instincts, all while improving the function of their hearts and lungs to ensure they grow up healthy.
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Playgrounds make school and education fun
Schools have a vital role in a child’s learning and development and for many children, learning and play go hand-in-hand. Creating an environment where kids can play, create, relax, and have fun outside the classroom is an important component of any school. Kids can have an outlet for their seemingly boundless energy levels and an extremely positive one at that.
Playgrounds are the lifeblood of a school and provide many benefits to children, the school, and the community around them. With playgrounds at schools, children have a place where they can have fun, create friendships, and learn and develop new skills. If you are looking to build or upgrade a school playground or upgrade your school playground, contact Playground Centre today.