Inclusivity and accessibility aren’t new concepts but they’re ones that tend to be overlooked when it comes to playgrounds, especially in neighborhoods where the playground equipment has been in place for years or decades. These older equipment sets were designed in an age when inclusive playgrounds weren’t even a thought and it leaves many children who are living with disabilities without a place to play with their peers. Why should we be trying to make all playgrounds inclusive?
Importance of Active Play
We all know how important active play is for children, especially with childhood obesity affecting more than 12 million children throughout the country. Children should be getting 60 minutes of cardio activity at least three times a week. Unfortunately, most playgrounds aren’t designed to allow children with disabilities to play on equal footing with their peers.
Studies have shown that limiting play in children also limits their ability to learn social and interpersonal skills that they will need throughout their life. Children learn how to compromise, how to lead and how to problem solve, just to name a few skills that they can obtain just through unstructured play on the playground. Traditional playgrounds make it difficult or even impossible for disabled children to learn the same skills as their peers that will help them navigate the world as they grow.
To the Benefit of Everyone
Inclusive play doesn’t just benefit children with disabilities – it benefits everyone on the playground. Children don’t learn how to talk to people with disabilities or even people who are different than them unless they get to spend time with them.
You can teach children about diversity in the classroom but it might go in one ear and out the other. The best way to teach children to accept diversity and show them that people with disabilities are no different than they are is to let them play together on the same level. Unstructured play teaches tolerance in a way that no classroom lesson ever could.
For the Parents Too
Children aren’t the only ones who can benefit from an inclusive play space – because children aren’t the only ones who have disabilities. Parents with disabilities aren’t able to play with their children on traditional playgrounds that are equipped with stairs or walls that need to be climbed. We all know how much our kids love it when we play with them, so why would we build playgrounds that exclude disabled parents as much as they exclude disabled children?
Even the equipment outside the playground can be made inclusive with things like wheelchair friendly picnic benches and other seating which make it more comfortable for disabled parents to watch their children play from the sidelines even if they don’t want to join them on the equipment.
Making Play Spaces More Inclusive
What can we do to help make playgrounds and play spaces more inclusive so that everyone who wants to can enjoy them? It’s something that you can start as a member of the community – if you can rally the community behind you. Show the people in charge – the ones in charge of the money – that an accessible playground can be beneficial for everyone in your community.
Collect signed petitions, organize town councils or just get your neighbors to call your city council members to let them know that they want a more inclusive play space in your park. If you can show them that you can secure the funds – either through grants, private donations, crowdfunding or business sponsorships, so much the better. It’s one more feather in your cap, so to speak, and can make the politicians more likely to listen to your case.
The only other option is to purchase the land and build the playground on your own, but that is the most expensive option and leaves you both responsible for any necessary maintenance and liable for any injuries that happen on the playground. Having the playground built by the city relieves you of some of those responsibilities.
We should be trying to create inclusive playgrounds in every city in America. They are the best way to teach inclusivity to children of all abilities and make playgrounds much more welcoming for children who are living with disabilities. They’re not just good for the children who are playing climbing the walls or running across the bridges – it’s a good thing for the parents who are living with disabilities who want to enjoy the playground hand in hand with their children.
Taking your children to the playground shouldn’t be a struggle to find a place where everyone can play on equal footing – it should be as simple as heading to the local park and setting all of your children loose on the equipment without worrying that someone will feel left out because the equipment isn’t inclusive. If you don’t have an inclusive playground in your area, taking the first steps to having one built or having an existing playground upgraded can be as simple as making a phone call.
