Saturday, October 04, 2008

Playgrounds

You know all those wussy little playgrounds that decorate the parks now? For whom are they constructed?

It used to be that high slides and long-roped swings and complex climbing equipment would be enjoyable for pre-teens and even teen-agers. Of course, younger kids could play at the playground too, assuming they took on the equipment in a limited way, more appropriate to their smaller size.

But now the playgrounds are built for preschoolers.

What does that say about hurrying children? We are taking 2 yr-olds to the playgrounds now and expecting them to have all sorts of age-appropriate toys there, where 2-yr-olds used to ride in their strollers, play in their sandboxes, and have a small section of the playground that would work for them.

How many 14-yr-olds do you see at a playground any more? Not many, right? And yet, the 14-yr-olds who can still enjoy a swing or a slide that is grown-up sized ... aren't they usually the kids who impress you with how well-adjusted they are, polite to others, hard workers, and not little snits?

6 comments:

  1. My husband talks of starting a website listing playgrounds across the country that still have non-wussy equipment to play on. There were 2 parks within minutes of our parsonage in Minnesota that had scary, non-PC playground set-ups, complete with merry-go-rounds AND see-saws AND REALLY high slides.

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  2. "And yet, the 14-yr-olds who can still enjoy a swing or a slide that is grown-up sized ... aren't they usually the kids who impress you with how well-adjusted they are, polite to others, hard workers, and not little snits?"

    ... and 24-yr-olds, and 34-yr-olds, and 44-yr-olds... C.S. Lewis was right on when he suggested that a desire to avoid seeming childlike is at the heart of childishness.

    Erin: Please don't! You'd be practically handing them over to the Peagravel Police.

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  3. Maybe if Erin's list isn't on a website, but is passed from one parent to another with all the subterfuge we can manage? Shhhh, don't tell, but I know where there's a real, old-fashioned dizzifying merry-go-round, and it's near enough we can get to it! Yowsa!

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  4. That's true...an underground playground list would be better. Never thought of the evil-wussy parents who would want to tear all those great parks down.

    FYI: Peagravel is great fun for the babies who can't play on the scary, non-PC equipment. It provided hours of infantile entertainment for our babies/ toddlers while we played on the merry-go-rounds and see-saws. It is high in fiber too!

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  5. Peagravel is probably the best playground substrate, in my opinion. It absorbs enough shock to prevent really serious injuries, but a good fall onto it still hurts like the dickens. Which it should.

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