Adventure parks are breeding grounds for kids' ingenuity to run amok, as well as their parents' frenzied imagination. Hammers, cement, fire posts, bricks and boards can all make for a child's dream fort but for some mothers and fathers, they build in anxiety and constant questioning.
All who take risks eventually get hurt at some point. So again, a very concerned parent may ask, "Are adventure playgrounds worth the risk?"
"In a documentary on The Land, a Welsh adventure playground, a play worker describes the difference between risk and hazard: a risk you take on knowingly; a hazard is unexpected, like a nail sticking out of a board. The play workers are there to remove hazards and leave the risk," The New Yorker cites.
Even though the younger kids under 6 require constant adult supervision, the older children are set free to explore on their own with facilitators nearby, to assess risks and manage them efficiently. Sometimes, the real danger is not found on the perils of the nearby streets and other hazards but on over-protecting the children. Yes, they might scrape their knees or trip and fall but such are part and parcel of growing up, testing boundaries and learning how to be safe.
According to The Guardian, play has long been deemed as a vital part of a child's wellbeing and satisfaction, not to mention a boost to the development of their future life skills. Kids, who seem aloof, may have had lesser social interactions, which can be derived during playtime. The others lacking in confidence may have been less exposed to skill-building activities.
The step of faith mothers and fathers take towards adventure playgrounds is a calculated one. In fact, The Huffington Post adds, "At Kolle 37, an Adventure Playground in Berlin where kids can build their own three-story forts with wood and nails, two children have broken bones and a couple have stepped on nails over the course of five years."
This type of playground is less dangerous than it appears. In fact, the benefits of setting the children free far outweigh the risks.
