Why safe playgrounds aren't great for kids

There's a case for making playgrounds riskier.

The stereotypical modern playground — with its bright colors and rubberized flooring — is designed to be clean, safe, and lawsuit-proof. But that isn't necessarily the best design for kids.

US playground designers spent decades figuring out how to minimize risk: reducing heights, softening surfaces, and limiting loose parts. But now, some are experimenting with creating risk. A growing body of research has found that risky outdoor play is a key part of children’s health, promoting social interactions, creativity, problem-solving, and resilience.

Some communities are even experimenting with “adventure playgrounds,” a format with origins in World War II Denmark, where bomb sites became impromptu playgrounds. Filled with props like nails, hammers, saws, paint, tires, and wood planks, these spaces look more like junkyards than play spaces — and parents are often kept outside of the playground while children are chaperoned by staff. Now, that question of keeping children safe versus keeping children engaged is at the heart of a big debate in playground design.

[ian-hmcx]

"If presented with an overly safe space, they end up seeking thrills and danger that the design didn't account for." This is the exact reason we had competitions for who could jump off the swing from the highest point

[marcranger]

It's just like the slides. Back In the day there weren't those plastic slides. Only high polished metal ones. Where you had to calculate the speed in relation to the sun's position to determine if you wanted to be rare, medium rare or well done when you arrived at the bottom of the slide

[thunderbreeze_]

as a kid i would literally want to play more in a ditch, creek or a field with rocks and planks rather than at a playground with plastic toys

[lottevannoort]

In the Netherlands, "natural playgrounds" have started sprouting recently. They're essentially small pieces of land, landscaped with small hills, water with stepping stones in them, small wooden bridges, winding paths, and a funicular. They're all about getting kids to go on adventures and figure it out themselves, rather than creating a fixed playground. They're also esthetically really pleasing as they're a small piece of nature.

[theoverseer]

kids should be "safely endangered"

in other words, the play should allow them to take risks, but none of the risks should be inherently life-threatening

[nightshot]

The problem is the people designing playgrounds are focusing more on looks than play. Honestly modern play grounds look more like modern art then play grounds.

[genericprofile]

I can guarantee that when I was on a playground as a kid I did not play safely.
"Hey wanna see who can jump off the swings the farthest"

[jacobkorducki]

We definitely tried to make our “safe” playground more risky as kids by climbing on top of the slides, bars, roofs. They definitely have a point here

[The_Horizon]

I remember at my school a while back, there was this clay pit or something, and It was always full of kids digging through it trying to get the biggest rocks. The school removed it though, and everyone was upset.

[adolphstalin]

It’s like a wise man once said “if a kid gets injured, they learn not to do whatever got them injured in the future”

[__moonlight__]

As a child when I saw a slide with a roof on, I’d have just climbed on the roof.

[DylanPort]

“Oh boy! A steering wheel in the middle of a wall! This will entertain me for hours!”

[claretravels]

"Kids respond well to being taken seriously" is a very wise observation. If I have kids I really don't want to be a helicopter parent.

[azrielaurelio]

This explains why kids tend to run up slides

[kenzbug]

Even as a teenager, I would love to play on one of the adventure playgrounds

[zorb]

Kids on modern playgrounds: *slides off the slide, dust themselves off, run to their mom for ice cream because they bored*
Kids on adventure playgrounds: *Trench warfare intensifies*

[joojok]

Here's the thing:

Theres gonna be that one kid who hogs the hammer and threatens they will hit anyone if someone touches it

[joyboysplanet]

it’s all fun and games till someone screams “hammer time”

[Jellyfishcollector]

The older kids would find a way to get on the roof of the "safe" playground, making it unsafe. We would climb on the railings as we traversed it. We made it unsafe because it felt more fun that way.

[namenamename]

0:41 that kid is a hero. He isn't putting a nail into the wood, he's just hammering the bare wood. I don't know why, but I find this extremely funny.