Children Learn to Play Peacefully



Peaceful Playgrounds Comprehensive Kit

Peaceful Playgrounds Physical Education (Fundamental)

So what do principals do on their day off?

A work force of nearly 100 elementary principals came to Houston a day ahead of NAESP’s convention to participate in the second annual NAESP Community Service Day.

Landscape Structures served as the corporate sponsor for NAESP’s Community Service Day and donated $20,000 worth of playground materials for the project.

An article in Deleware online cites the benefits of Recess Before Lunch including better behavior and less food waste. Recent studies and data from districts across the country are convincing more school officials to change the time-honored order of lunch then recess.

According the the article: "Principals of scores of schools who moved recess before lunch discovered that not only do students eat more and waste less food, but behavior impr…

A study from Spain indicates that an afterschool physical activity program helped lessen the number of overweight and obese fourth- and fifth-grade girls, but not boys, and led to declines in cholesterol levels in girls and boys, report study researchers.

The MOVI program - 90 minutes of after-school games, dance, or sports such as soccer and basketball was held 3 days a week.


Grant Writing Webinar Today PST at 10. Wednesday, March 31, 2010 -��…

by Travis Saunders Obesity Panacea

In most developed nations, kids get far less physical activity than they did just a few generations ago. Given the strong links between physical inactivity and health risk (and given that we're now seeing "adult" diseases like heart disease and type 2 diabetes in children and teenagers), this has become a very real public health concern. Unfortunately, when it comes to increasing childhood physic…

Sunday's New York Times has an article entitled, "Forget goofing around. Recess has a new boss." The article was about Broadway Elementary School in Newark. According to the Times, "there is no more sitting around after lunch. No more goofing off with friends. No more doing nothing." It seems Broadway Elementary has hired a recess coach who organizes daily games and students are expected to participate in the chosen ac…

A playground on steroids. A playground of the future. Active play interactions. The next big idea in playgrounds. Theses descriptions could all describe Icon.

This past week I observed a new playground structure called Icon by Kompan. But really, structure doesn't even begin to describe it. Think of a giant video game that challenges kids to move around a play structure as an active participant. Yes, panting as a result of quick agil…

Who knew that principals thought recess was so important? In fact, according to a research report entitled, "The State of Play", released yesterday, an overwhelming majority of principals (96%) conclude that recess has a positive impact on social development and (97%) of principals believe that recess has a positive impact on general well-being. But that's not all, 80% of them said recess has a positive impact on academic achiev…

No balls at recess? Must be April 1.

In an elementary school in Ottawa, Canada it's no laughing matter. It seems the school principal banned balls saying they were dangerous and causing injury to students due to the snowy and icy conditions.

Students Moore and Lawlor have given the principal a copy of a petition to bring back balls at recess. Slater said she’ll talk with the students and their parents, but she said balls are still off lim…

My sister (a Peaceful Playgrounds grant writer) sent me these jumprope rhymes from the May 1951 magazine saved by my grandmother. Enjoy.

Little Orphan Annie
Went to buy some candy,
In she went, out she went,
Little Orphan Annie.
How many pieces did she get?
1-2-3-4

Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, go upstairs.
Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, say your prayers.
Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, tun off the light.
Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, say good night.

I'm a little Dutch girl, dr…

11 Steps to a Successful Playgrounds - Monty Christiansen, CPSI

If you are building, maintaining or strive to keep all kids safe on a playground then you will find the 11 steps to a successful Playground helpful.

1. Strive to purchase equipment with high "play value"
2. Make sure your playground meets appropriate play standards
3. Have your equipment installed by a qualified installer.
4. Install and maintain sufficient safety surfacing
…

With mounting lawsuits and tight budgets recess is again on the chopping block at some districts despite evidence of its importance.

Free play or free form play is a type of play that we support here at Peaceful Playgrounds. People often misinterpret the organization that we provide with our many game markings and choices as "structuring" recess and incorrectly assume that we recommend that schools require participation in one of our…

A parent at a Bakersfield City School is asking the city school district to pay $19,000 after his daughter fell off the monkey bars and broke her wrist. This is not the first parent to file this kind of claim. Past Bakersfield City School Board meeting agendas show other parents have filed similar claims.

While it's not uncommon to fall off the monkey bars, the parent contends that the school district is responsible for his daughter's bro…

The Express Star News
Story from the Chickashanews.com
October 30, 2009




Putting the Map on Grand

Teachers, students, and PTO members at Grand Avenue Elementary recently finished a Fifty Nifty United States project.

They produced a painted outdoor map of the United States.

The concrete was provided for this large outdoor map of the United States by the Grand Avenue PTO. Peaceful Playgrounds stencils and kit were made possible by the Chickasha School Fo…

The "all or nothing" methods of problem solving never fails to amaze me. Here's the latest example. A private school in Maryland used the adjacent park for recess. It seems that preschool parents complained that the older school kids were taking over the park, playing inappropriately, and leaving trash.

The result was to ban the school kids from entering the park between 9-4.

Why not ask the school to increase supervision? Stude…

Continuing with the playground theme from yesterday's blog....... Here's 10 unusual and unique playgrounds.


Thanks to the mental floss blog.

The Peaceful Playgrounds Online Playground Supervisor Training is designed to introduce administrators, teachers, substitute teachers, physical educators, parents, after school personnel, and playground supervisors to the responsibilities and techniques associated with keeping children safe on a playground.

VIEW Playground Supervision Course VIDEO

This online course will serve as a certified professional development experience.

This course details …

APPLETON - Recess used to be just sliding and swinging at Johnston Elementary School in Appleton. Now a program to get more kids involved has them adding hopscotch, four-square, and jump rope to the mix.

Parents at the school wanted to find a way to make better use of the playground, so they turned to Peaceful Playgrounds and received grants from the Appleton Education Foundation and the Johnston PTA to pay the $4,000 for the stencils, rules book…

I often get phone calls requesting grant information on funding school playground structures. Here's a new grant that I've discovered. It requires matching funds but this may be just the push that many schools need to make a new playground structure a reality.

Children, Youth, and Families at Risk Sustainable Community Projects

The Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES), USDA announces the Children, Youth, …

Written by Jim Mendoza - jmendoza@kgmb9.com

The prisoners are steps away from being released. They're building a bridge as much as they are a place for kids to play.

"It makes me feel good about myself, giving back to the community," Ridao said.

The playground project at Kauluwela has been a long time coming. It's been ten years since the school last had playground equipment. Friday, kindergartners saw it for the first time.

M…