How a circuit-style design approach keeps children engaged and coming back
By Scott Roschi
Community playgrounds strive to be spaces that families return to many times. For this to happen, playgrounds need to keep ideas and opportunities for play fresh so children remain engaged, challenged, and eager to come back.
For decades, traditional playground equipment gave children a predictable pattern to follow: Go up. Slide down. Repeat. But this linear design structure limits play value. After repeatedly following the same route and exhausting all play elements, children can develop a “been there, done that” mentality about a playground and lose interest in returning.
Today, many playgrounds are embracing circuit-like designs. This approach doesn’t prescribe routes of play. Instead, it creates many paths—vertical, horizontal, or in the form of a game or adventure. This design approach encourages children to move, play, and challenge themselves in multiple ways and on their own terms.