Little has changed.  Six years ago in a Play Nice Newsletter we reported on the results from the National Survey of Schools in (Blatchford, 1998) which  showed that there is a general view amongst staff that children's behavior has worsened over the past five years, with one in four schools feeling that behavior at recess has deteriorated, with an increase in aggression and more difficult behavior. The study concludes that children today tend not to be as constructive in play as they used to be, are more likely to be idle on the playground, and have forgotten many of the traditional games once regularly seen. This lack of purpose can quite often be the root of bullying problems.

Peaceful Playgrounds Research (2000) found that children on a "typical playground have few developmentally appropriate games choices, with basketball, tetherball, 4 square, and volleyball being the most often marked on a playground. These games kept 10-20% of the students involved in game activities. Introducing the over 100 games choices in the Peaceful Playgrounds®  Program resulted in nearly 80% of the children being involved in games and/or activities." The research findings further indicated that playground markings were important because without the markings children soon forgot about their game choices after a short period of time. For more on Peaceful Playgrounds research check out our research page of the website.

Clothes Organizers

Join us for our HSN launch of our new product called Children's Clothes Organizers. What started as organizing playgrounds has expanded into our latest adventure organizing closets or more specifically "helping kids to be better organized" for the start of a successful school day.

Watch our product launch live on air on  Aug. 2 @ 8a.m. EST. 

Playground supervisor competency is an important factor to ensure good supervision. Well trained playground supervisors are the best defense against litigation. The Peaceful Playgrounds online learning program is a perfect solution to ensuring a safe playground.

 

A short sample of our Playground Supervisor training is available for preview.  Participants take a short quiz at the end of the training and receive a completion certificate upon passing the quiz.

Marking the playground

Playground Markings

A range of appropriate playground markings can help promote physical activity and play in primary grades. Results from a  study in England showed that the physical activity level of 5-7 year olds increased by approximately 20% after playground markings had been added. Children's play was also found to be generally more focused and purposeful (Stratton, 1996).

Impressive results of a Florida elementary school's three-year effort to combat childhood obesity through increased physical activity were recently published by the National Association of County & City Health Officials (NACCHO). The results* show a startling 96% of the school's first-graders in 2011 to be active at recess - up from 52% in 2008. As the tool of intervention, the study team chose Peaceful Playgrounds®, a program specifically designed to promote active play and structured activities by employing a wide variety of multi-use stenciled shapes, grids and games painted onto the ground.

Physical Activity Increases After Peaceful Playgrounds

 Complete article: Peaceful Playgrounds: Using Evidence-Based Strategies and QI to Address Childhood Obesity in Florida 

Free  Peaceful Playgrounds Webinar is the perfect
playground tune-up for a new school year.

Free Webinars

Learn how to create a playground that really works!

 

Webinars are 45 minutes long with a 15 minute question and answer session.

 

No special software is necessary.  Participate at your computer.  Phone conferencing set up is not necessary.

 

Register early  space is limited. (Aug. 8 @ 10 PST) 

 

Select your subject and act now to attend a free webinar of your choice at a time that fits your schedule.