Why kids need to take more risks

0:06 In the 1930s, Danish landscape architect Carl Theodor Sørensen

0:12 noticed that his neighborhood’s children loved playing in old building sites.

0:17 Watching kids swing from exposed beams,

0:19 scavenge for scrap materials, and hammer together bridges

0:23 inspired him to transform an abandoned housing estate

0:27 into a dedicated junk playground.

0:30 Sørensen’s site became a huge success,

0:33 and soon countries throughout Europe

0:35 were making playgrounds out of derelict building yards

0:38 and even former World War I bomb sites.

0:41 These environments might look dangerous,

0:44 especially to 21st century parents

0:46 who tend to be far more anxious about their childrens’ safety

0:48 than previous generations.

0:50 But research has found these seemingly scary setups

0:54 teach kids important lessons that standard playgrounds don’t.

0:59 Play is profoundly important for childhood development.

1:03 Creating games and following rules helps teach problem solving.

1:07 Moving our bodies through varied terrain helps hone our motor control.

1:11 And playing with others lets us practice language and refine our social skills.

1:17 Since play comes naturally to all of us,

1:19 children are likely to develop these skills in most environments.

1:23 But researchers have identified a few factors that can maximize these benefits.

1:29 Chief among them is freedom.

1:31 Play is all about experimentation,

1:34 and kids need the agency to explore and shape their surroundings

1:38 without adults getting in the way.

1:41 The next factor is novelty—

1:44 kids are always hungry for new and unpredictable play elements.

1:49 Finally, they need time to see their plans through.

1:54 While we could all use more time to play,

1:57 the best play environments offer freedom and novelty

2:00 that kids can explore as much or as little as they like.

2:04 But traditional playgrounds don’t offer much flexibility here.

2:08 Swings, slides, and climbing frames are hardly novel structures.

2:13 They also have relatively low affordance—

2:16 a term used by play researchers

2:18 to indicate how open-ended an object’s design is.

2:22 Items with high affordance, like a sandbox,

2:25 can be interacted with in many ways.

2:27 Meanwhile, objects with low affordance, like a slide,

2:31 were designed with a single use in mind.

2:34 Even when kids are creative enough to find new uses for low affordance objects,

2:40 they're still more limited playthings.

2:43 To address these problems,

2:44 some designers are looking back at Europe's junk playgrounds

2:48 to create modern adventure playgrounds—

2:50 big, open spaces full of high affordance structures

2:54 and free play possibilities.

2:56 Berlin’s Kolle 37 features scrap and building tools for kids to manipulate.

3:02 In Tokyo’s muddy Harapa Park,

3:05 children shape water slides, sink holes, and splash pools

3:09 out of the natural landscape.

3:12 And in London’s Glamis Adventure Playground

3:14 kids burn things in fire pits, with the help of play worker employees.

3:20 While some parents worry these unpredictable spaces are too dangerous,

3:24 play researchers like Ellen Sandseter

3:26 would say this so-called risky play is essential.

3:30 Giving kids the space to experiment with fast speeds,

3:34 high heights and getting lost

3:36 helps them develop better judgment and confidence.

3:39 In fact, risky play is how kids learn to manage risk and keep themselves safe.

3:45 One study even found that kids were more likely to get seriously injured

3:49 in traditional playgrounds— perhaps because adventure playgrounds

3:52 encourage them to be more aware

3:54 of their surroundings.

3:56 Risky play also helps develop skills for managing mental health.

4:00 Experimenting with small doses of uncertainty

4:03 gets kids used to life being unpredictable,

4:06 helping them better manage anxiety for years to come.

4:11 Adventure playgrounds aren't the only places for risky play.

4:15 Nature playgrounds encouraging kids to explore creeks, caves, and tree climbing

4:20 combine the perks of risk-taking

4:22 with the health benefits of connecting with nature.

4:25 Meanwhile, other designers are working to bring more freedom and novelty

4:28 to traditional designs.

4:30 This Philadelphia park features a 30-person mega-swing,

4:34 and Nebraska’s Omaha Riverfront Playground

4:37 uses a ribbon of multi-layered decking as a play spine,

4:42 warping up and down to reveal secret tunnels and rope forests.

4:47 So the real key is to design a variety of playgrounds,

4:51 supporting a wide range of activities

4:53 that promote fun, agency, and a dash of uncertainty—

4:57 inviting kids to fill in the possibilities.