Playing Is Educational

When it comes to educational toys, it is best that parents have a good understanding of what can be involved in this broad category. While many parents think educational toys will be limited to math games or books, there is actually a very diverse and wide array of these toys. Therefore, if you think your children aren’t interested in these kinds of products, look into some more unconventional educational toys. To the surprise of many parents, this can include something like outdoor play structures.

Installing a jungle gym or play set in your backyard can be considered a very important type of educational toy. While it won’t teach them anything academic, it will teach them necessary skills regarding coordination and strength. It will also offer increased social skills as your kid navigates the swings and slides with other children. It can even be a means to elevate imagination and creative play as your kid is sure to imagine the play set as a pirate ship or imagine the sand below as hot lava.

While most of the time I’m a well budgeted individual and I don’t believe in spending a lot of money on a holiday like Easter, last year I wanted to buy my son something special.  I felt bad that I couldn’t buy him the Gorilla playset he wanted for Christmas, for financial reasons and because the weather would have delayed me building it for several months.

When Easter came and we were well into Spring, I decided to buy him the Gorilla playset I wish I could have given to him for the holidays.  On the Saturday before Easter, my son spent all day at his friend’s house, and I spent all day setting up the playset.  When he came home, it was dark, and he didn’t think to look in the backyard of course. Easter morning I told my son to look out the window in the backyard, and his eyes lit up and he ran to the backdoor.  I could hardly convince him to put on his shoes before going outside, but it was for sure a great moment in fatherhood.

Wooden outdoor play structures provide children with a wonderful location for their outdoor active play.  If your are thinking about purchasing an outdoor wooden play structure for your children, we would like to recommend a Gorilla Playset.  One of our favorite’s is the Tiki Treehouse - Beachcomber because it has a lot of features at a very affordable price.

Your children will enjoy pretending being Tarzan and living in this synthetic thatch-roofed Gorilla swing set with bamboo accents.  They can swing on the swings, hang upside-down on the trapeze bar, or climb the Caribbean Cargo net.  This backyard playset also features a gang plank climbing ramp, a built-in picnic table area with a sand box, and a slide where he can enjoy the rush of sliding down to the ground. 

All wooden outdoor play structures, (cedar, redwood, treated lumber, or untreated lumber), require maintenance to preserve to look, beauty, and integrity of the wood.  Depending on the climate that you live in, it is recommended to re-stain or reseal wooden play structures every couple years. 

Here are some guideline to assist you in choosing your stain.

First you need to choose a stain appropriate for the weather conditions in your area.  There are different brands of stains that have different properties, depending on local weather.  Some stains have added protection against mildew and rot found for wetter climates and others have added protection against ultraviolet rays.

To determine how many gallons of stain you will need to buy, figure out how many square feet of wood is on your outdoor play structures.  Also keep in mind that you will likely need to apply more than one coat to achieve the best coverage.

Match the stain to the type and age of your wood which your wooden play structure is constructed from.  Some stains work best on pretreated lumber, which generally only requires a water sealer.  Untreated lumber should be stained immediately and requires more protection than treated lumber.

Stains come in a wide variety of colors, choose the color of stain that you desire.

Look for brushes or pads that are appropriate for applying stain.  keep in mind that stain is thinner than paint.  We recommend pads because they drip less than brushes, resulting in a more even stain application.

If you follow the above guidelines, your wooden outdoor play structures will last for generations.

It is important to keep your children safe when they are playing on their outdoor swing set.  To promote safety during their active play, it is ALWAYS recommended to provide adult supervision and be actively involved.  Stay alert, move around, and keep your kids in sights, especially your young ones.

1)  Go over basic precautions with your children, such as, always taking turns and sliding down feet-first on the slide.

2)  Refrain children from walking close to, in front of, behind or between moving play features.

3)  Refrain children from twisting swing chains or ropes since this may reduce the strength of these items

4)  Warn children to avoid swinging empty swing seats or gliders

5)  Teach children to sit in center of swings with their full weight on the swing seats

6)  Teach children to use the backyard playset in the intended manner.

7)  Teach children not to get off play equipment while still in motion. 

8)  To avoid potential clothing hazards, while your children are using their backyard playsets, make sure they are wearing well-fit clothing and shoes. 

(Avoid loose fit clothing or items with loose strings: drawstring pants, ponchos, halter-tops, scarves, or etc…)

 9)  Children should wear shoes at all times.

10)  Allow your child to only play on equipment that is appropriate to his age.

11)  Make sure the playground surface, underneath swings, climbers, and slide has the appropriate ground protection.  (Standard lawn and grass areas are not considered as ground protection.) 

 12)  Refrain children from climbing on playground structures when wet.

13)  Bring a safety kit with you. 

(This can be as simple as a zip-lock bag that contains some wet wipes, antibiotic cream and a few adhesive bandages.)

14)  Make sure your child is wearing sunscreen and stays properly hydrated. 

For more safety tips - view our other articles or visit our web-site: Playground Equipment Safety.

Information is supported by the National Program for Playground Safety

You invested into a wooden outdoor play structure to enhance your child’s life.  To keep your child safe and to maintain your investment, we suggest that you perform the following maintenance to your wooden play structure:

1)  To keep your wooden outdoor play structure looking good for years to come, you should apply a stain or apply a waterproof coating on it every 1 - 2 years to prevent water penetration.  ( This applies to all wooden play structures.  It does not matter if the play structure is pine, redwood, or cedar. )

2)  Inspect the wood framing for any splinters, large cracks,  rough spots, sharp edges, or decay that may occur due to wear and usage.  If required, you should sand them down, and then stain and waterproof the areas.

3)  Inspect for any deterioration or corrosion on structural components that are in contact with the ground.

4)  If your wooden outdoor play structure requires ground footing supports - make sure that they are not exposed.  If they are, back fill the area with sand or bark mulch.

5)  During the regular usage season, twice a month, make sure the your play structure is safe for your child.  Inspect all the nuts and bolts to assure that they are not missing, loose, or exposed.  ( Tighten if needed. )  It is particularly important to to check and tighten all bolts at the beginning of the season. 

6)  Check the swing elements, swings, chains, and slides monthly for wear, cracks or deterioration.  Inspect for any rust or chipped paint on any of the metal components.  Replace these parts at the first sign of deterioration.

7)  Inspect for any missing or damaged equipment components such as handrails, guide rails, and swing seats.

8)  Add sand or bark mulch to any worn or low areas beneath your wood play structure.  ( If is recommended to have at least 5″ of loose-fill surfacing in a playground area.  See: Consumers Product Safety Commission at cpsc.gov for more information on protective ground surfacing.)

9)  If you live in an area where the temperature drops below 32 degrees Fahrenheit or if the play structure is not going to be used, remove the swings and canopies to prolong the life of those items.

According to the Physical Activity Guidelines of Americans, your child should have 60 minutes (1 hour) or more of active play each day. 

Active play is a vital part of your child’s early childhood development because it increases their heart rate(aerobics), builds their muscles, increases their balance, and strengthens their bones.  Active play is any physical activity in which your child is actively moving at a moderate-intensity or vigorous-intensity rate.  (For example, walking for a distance is moderate-intensity and playing chase is vigorous-intensity.)

Encourage  your child to participate in active play activities that are enjoyable to them and offer variety.  By investing in a wooden outdoor play structure, you would be providing your child with a place to enjoy many active play activities that would promote aerobic play, muscle strengthening, and bone strengthening.  Your child can pretend that he is swinging from vine to vine, like Tarzan, as he swings on the swing, a mountain climber climbing up the rock wall, or an Olympian - climbing the ladder and sliding down the slide. 

Make playing on your wooden outdoor play structure part of your child’s daily routine. 

DID YOU KNOW:  

Obesity in children has increased:  Data from NHANES surveys (1976–1980 and 2003–2006) show that the prevalence of obesity has increased: for children aged 2–5 years, prevalence increased from 5.0% to 12.4%; for those aged 6–11 years, prevalence increased from 6.5% to 17.0%; and for those aged 12–19 years, prevalence increased from 5.0% to 17.6%.

For more information - look up obesity - at cdc.gov

By investing in a wooden play structure, you invest into your child’s physical development, social development, and imagination skills.  Keep your child safe as he or she is playing and learning.   

Each year, about 50,000 children go to U.S. hospital emergency rooms because of injuries on home playground equipment.  About 80% of the injuries occur when children fall from play equipment.  To reduce injuries and protentially life-threating injuries, one of the most important things you can do is install the proper protective gound surfacing under and around your wooden play structure.  Your lawn, grass and dirt,  IS NOT considered protective ground surfacing because wear and environmental factors can reduce their shock absoring effectiveness.

No matter what ground surfacing you have, injuries from falls may occur, including broken limbs.  However, with the proper shock absorbing protective ground covering, it is less likely for your child to aquire any serious injuries including protential head injuries that could be life-threatening or life-altering.  

Protective Surfacing:

You wooden play structure should never be installed without protective surfacing of some type.  Contrete, asphalt, or other hard surfaces should never be directly under your wooden play structure.  Grass and dirt are not considered protective surfacing because wear and environmental conditions can considerably reduce their shock absorbing effectiveness.  Certain manufactured synthetic surfaces, carpeting and mats,  are acceptable; however, test data on shock absorbing performance should be requested from the manufacturer.  These test results should comply with ASTM F1292.  (ASTM F1292 Standard Specification for Impact Attenuation of Surface Systems Under and Around Playground Equipment)

ASTM F1292 ratings provide the “critical height” rating of a surface.  This height can be considered as an approximation of a fall height below which a life-threatening head injury would not be expected to occur.  This rating should be greater than or equal to the fall height - the distance between the highest part of your wooden play structure and the protective surface beneath it.  

Certain loose-fill surfacing materials are acceptable, such as the types and depths shown in the table below.  To determine the proper types and depths of recommended protective gound surfacing, determine the “critical height” for falls, as noted in the above paragragh, and view the chart below.

FALL HEIGHT IN FEET FROM WHICH A LIFE-THREATENING HEAD INJURY WOULD NOT BE EXPECTED (Minimum Compressed Loose-Fill Surfacing Depths)
Type of material	6” Depth	9” Depth	12” Depth
Double-shredded bark mulch	6 Feet	10 Feet	11 Feet
Wood chips	7 Feet	10 Feet	11 Feet
Fine sand	5 Feet	5 Feet	9 Feet
Fine pea gravel	6 Feet	7 Feet	10 Feet

Fall Safety Zones:

Your fall safety zone, covered with a protective surfacing material, is essential under and around your wooden play structure.  This area should cover a minimum of 6 feet in all directions from the perimeter of the play structure and also be least 6 feet away from any buildings or obstacles, and that includes fences, sheds, trees, or poles.  In the swing area, you should have a larger safety zone to the front and rear of the swing.  This distance should be equal to or greater than twice the height of the top beam from which the swing is suspended.  (For example: If the swing beam is 10 feet off the ground, the safety zone should be a minimum of 20 feet in front and 20 feet behind the swing.  So, the total play area should be a minimum of 40 feet wide.)

The above information is supported the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) at cpsc.gov.

Unfortunately, about 50,000 children go to U.S. hospital emergency rooms annually because of injuries caused on home playground equipment and about 80% of those injuries are from children falling off of the equipment.

To ensure that your child has a safe and entertaining experience while playing on their wooden play structure, make sure that you select and/or create a safe location for their play structure.  Your child’s wooden play structure should be placed in a location where it visible from inside of your home, patio, or porch.  This location should also be clear of obstacles that could cause injuries.  This location should be away from roads, driveways, and low over-hanging tree branches.  You should also make sure that are no overhead wires, such as power lines or cable wires, by this play area.

To reduce the likelihood of your child getting hurt from tripping, you should choose an area that is level and free of tree stumps and/or roots and large rocks.  Having a level playing area will also provide an excellent well-drained play area that won’t get  washed away be heavy rains.  (If your desired play area isn’t level, you should have it re-graded for the proper installation of your wooden play structure and to provide for proper water drainage.)

This location should also be least 6 feet away from any buildings or obstacles, and that includes fences, sheds, trees, or poles.  In the swing area, you should have a larger safety zone to the front and rear of the swing.  This distance should be equal to twice the height of the top beam from which the swing is suspended.  (For example: If the swing beam is 10 feet off the ground, the safety zone should be a minimum of 20 feet in front and 20 feet behind the swing.  So, the total play area should be a minimum of 40 feet wide.)

As mentioned earlier, 80% of the injuries that children receive while playing on their home playground structure are caused by falling.  To help protect your child from falls, you should provide a shock-absorbing protective surfacing material, such as mulch, sand, of other rubberized compounds underneath and around your wooden outdoor play structure’s safety zone - that was discussed earlier.

The above information is supported the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission at cpsc.gov.

When you invest in a wooden play structure, you are making an investment in your child’s early childhood development by increasing her self-confidence, social skills, imagination, physical strength, and muscle coordination development. 

Self-Confidence:  At the beginning, your child will not know how to maneuver around a wooden play structure.  As he learns how to climb the ladders, slide down the slide, or swing on the swing,  she will increase her own self-confidence.

Social Skills:  A wooden play structure will provide a wonderful location for your child to increase his social skills and build life-long lasting friendships.  Your child can learn how to interact with her siblings, friends, or neighbors playing at his play structure, by sharing the swing or taking turns sliding down the slide.  They can plan their next imaginative adventures, tell stories, and play games in their own private fort deck areas. 

Imagination Development:  As your child plays with her steering wheel, telescope, and periscope on his outdoor play structure,  she can let  imagination run wild.  They can pretend that they are climbing a mountain, sailing a big ship, or flying to the moon.

Muscle Coordination and Physical Strength Development:  When your child plays on the climbing ladders or rock wall of the wooden play structure, your child will increase his balance, muscle coordination, and physical strength.

The key to investing in a wooden play structure is to make it a one time investment.  Make your investing decision as if your child is 10 years old.  Invest into a play structure large enough for your child to grow into, not out of.  That way you don’t have to purchase different playsets as your child gets older.