When your kids are tired of the usual playground offerings in your town this summer, surprise them with a trip to Adventure Play New England, Boston’s one-of-a-kind adventure playground! Located in the trendy Jamaica Plain neighborhood, Adventure Play New England is set to open on Saturday, June 29th with a kick-off from 10 am to 5 pm that includes a food truck, arts and crafts, and plenty of mud and water play.
The popularity of adventure playgrounds is still gaining ground here in the United States, with only a handful between New York, Texas and California. The premise is fairly simple; adventure playgrounds inspire children to play with items that encourage optimal risk, independence and, yes, adventure!
Instead of the typical playground structures we all know so well, adventure playgrounds are filled with what is called “loose parts.” These can be manufactured items such as old household items, paint, and cardboard boxes, as well as natural elements, like pine cones, leaves, tree stumps, mud and water. These loose parts allow children ages 4 and up the freedom to create, invent, or engineer in an open-ended, unstructured environment. For families with children under the age of 4, there is a shaded sandpit with age-appropriate items for them to play with.
Trained employees called Playworkers observe from afar and intervene only if necessary. Parents can enjoy a cup of coffee and relax nearby but are encouraged to give their children the space to play without direct oversight. In other words, it’s a playground for kids, run by kids.
You’ll still see a swing set and slide at Adventure Play New England, but instead of those being the focus, the loose parts take the spotlight. On any given day, you might see children building a tree house, designing a catapult with a pail of water, or decorating a tree stump with brightly colored paints. You might see a child excavating using an old kitchen brush or carefully sawing a tree branch in half with a Play Worker’s guidance.
Although Adventure Playgrounds are designed with some element of inherent risk, they are free from obvious hazards. At the start of each day, Playworkers conduct a risk assessment to eliminate dangers such as exposed nails, sharp-edged items, or unstable height structures. They are constantly evaluating the environment and asking themselves important questions throughout the day to help maximize safety while minimizing interference.
The benefits of adventure play are numerous, too. Children learn valuable negotiation, empathy, acceptance and social skills. It also builds confidence, independence and resilience as well as fine and gross motor skills, hand-eye coordination, mathematical/analytical and language skills, and broadens a child’s imagination.
Adventure Play New England occupies a beautiful natural space at Hope Central Church at 85 Seaverns Avenue in Jamaica Plain. Please note that there are no restrooms on site.
Children should wear sturdy, closed-toe shoes and clothing they won’t mind ruining. The fee is $7/child, $12/for two; no one will be turned away for a lack of funds.
For more information, visit www.adventureplaynewengland.com
Adventure Play New England
85 Seaverns Ave
Jamaica Plain, MA 02130
Born and raised in Boston, Kathryn Camgemi now lives in West Concord with her husband and their young son. A writer of both fiction and non-fiction for thirty years, she has been published in Chicken Soup for the Soul and Reader's Digest, among others. She has been secular homeschooling her son with additional needs for four years and strongly believes all children can succeed given the right environment. She writes periodically about their homeschooling journey at http://www.ahomeschooledlife.wordpress.com. You can also find her at her Facebook page, A Homeschooled Life.
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