Our Playground Design Philosophy

Our Playground Design Philosophy

PlayWorks brings play to life.

We are passionate about designing playgrounds that children will want to go to and will want to stay on and play on. Our playground design philosophy has been influenced by world renowned play experts and 25 years of experience in playground design.  More importantly, we have observed how children play and have learned directly from them just what engages children on a playground.

By focusing on the following basic play principles, we will design your playground, large or small, to meet the needs of your children. 

Children expect a playground to give them opportunities to have fun. In adult words this means:

PlayWorks Design Consultant will always pay careful attention to the proper selection and configuration of play components for your site, endeavoring to include opportunities for each of these four types of play. These components will engage children and make your playground fun!

Robust Active Play

Kids expect a playground to be a place where they can engage in the high energy play that is discouraged indoors.  They want the robust active play including a lot of activity and noise.

Often play structures are central to the playground and can offer a wide variety of vigorous play activities.

  • Climbing
  • Sliding
  • Gliding
  • Hanging and swinging
  • Traversing from place to place
  • Balancing
  • Gymnastic activities

PlayWorks uses proven design strategies for configuring the decks and components on structures to assure you that children get the most play possible while incorporating as many of these activities as possible.  The components are selected to offer a variety of routes of travel  up, down, over, under and across and are carefully placed to keep kids playing in continuous motion.

Sensory Stimulation

In addition to a well designed play structure, a playground should include components, often free standing, intended to stimulate a child’s senses.  Kids love a playground where they can experience uninhibited movement. We call it the playground buzz.  These sensations include:

  • Sliding
  • Swinging
  • Spinning
  • Rocking

When children spin, swing, rock, glide, slide or hang upside down their sense of balance is affected and the vestibular system is stimulated.  When this occurs new neural pathways in the brain can be created. This is essential to normal sensory processing. Research has shown that some children with learning disabilities can benefit greatly from the vestibular stimulation experienced on a playground.

And of course these movements are fun.  Do you remember swinging and spinning on a playground?


Social Play

Children play as much “with each other” as they play “on the equipment”.

Watch kids play on a play structure and witness social interaction.

  • Talking, teasing, gossiping and just being together
  • Taking turns
  • Sharing
  • Watching each other
  • Showing off
  • Hanging out; under decks or perched on high places

Chase and tag

Every PlayWorks play structure will have essential routes for playing chase games. Chase and tag is one of the favourite activities for kids on a play structure. Touch the ground and you are “it”.

Multi user activities:

Many of the newest playgrounds include multi user components including swings, modern “merry go rounds”, teeter totters and balancing components. They will be among the most actively used pieces of equipment in the playground.

Nooks and Gathering Areas:

Children will naturally come together in areas that allow them to perch.  Play structures should offer sitting nooks under high decks, under roofs and in enclosed areas. You will often find a group of friends sitting on top of overhead ladders and parallel bars.

Imaginative and Fantasy Play

Playgrounds should provide props for language based, imaginative fantasy or dramatic play. This is the richest kind of play as it engages children at deeper levels of creativity, communication and social and emotional engagement.
The very best props for fantasy and dramatic play are:

  • Playhouses
  • Store fronts
  • Vehicles and steering wheels
  • Free form undefined shapes and spaces that kids can make into anything
  • Water
  • Sand


Designed for Fun!

Your PlayWorks play consultant and design team will work with you using our PlayWorks Playground Design Philosophy to make sure your kids get the most out of your new playground.

Kids on a PlayWorks playground will be actively engaged, in motion, playing with each other and having fun!