Outdoor Playground: Best Approach For Children’s Physical And Mental Development
The admonition to “Go and play outside” has always been a constant refrain for parents everywhere. Even at the dawn of the age of television, Saturday morning cartoons, video games and afterwards, many parents have remained steadfast in their attempts to ensure that their children spent some time playing outdoors. This encouragement has transferred from parents to children as they grew up and raised children of their own. There seem to be an intrinsic understanding among all parents of the benefits of outdoor play, especially concerning childhood development.
One of the most glaring indicators of the passage of time and increase in populations is the upsurge of new building developments. These seem to come hand in hand with the disappearance of available open spaces for parks and playgrounds. Consequently, there aren’t many locales left in major urban areas available to permit the establishment of large play areas for children to enjoy. Thus the advent of dedicated playgrounds dotted in spaces around cities and popular suburbs and housing developments.
Encouraging your child to step out and enjoy some time playing outside has been shown to have numerous benefits in children’s physical and mental development. These include:
- Improving overall physical health by exposing them to such beneficial aspects as exposure to vitamin D from direct sunlight which can boost bone growth and overall physical well being.
- There is a reduction in the likelihood of developing childhood obesity.
- Playing in the outdoors can help to boost creativity in children as their surroundings always stimulate their minds.
Playing outside has also been shown to increase independence and self-reliance as children learn to navigate their playgrounds on their terms and in ways most comfortable to them. This, in turn, increases their confidence as they grow up.
- Outdoor play is an excellent social learning tool. Interactions with other children and the lessons that come from navigating group play can translate to better social skills in children. It can even provide lessons in problem-solving.
- Children who play outside develop better motor skills as they go about their activity. This can prove useful later in life, especially in the case of playing sports.
With these and many more benefits in mind, it now becomes the onus of the parents, whether individually, or in a group setting, to see to it that their children have the tools on hand to derive the most benefits from outdoor play as they are growing up. Living in apartment buildings, or even crowded cities makes it more challenging to provide these tools. It is then necessary to seek out creative solutions to counteract this lack.
The equalising factor in this need, both for those living within the city and those in the suburbs that may enjoy more space, is playground sets. These have become useful compressed playgrounds that will fit into most spaces once they are made available.
Working with a skilled playground kits manufacturer can bring the solution to the need for more outdoor playtime for your children. They have the tools on hand to provide what you require based on your space and budgetary restrictions. With your children’s physical and mental development at stake, the expert outdoor playground builder can become your most valuable partner in garnering ideal results.