The Jungle Gym and the Monkey Bars have lasted far longer than the Pet Rock and In-Line skates.  They have stood the test of time against Rock-em-Sock-em-Robots and the Pogo Stick.  Why could that be?

We will argue it is because they lean into a child’s innate need to be physical and creative.  Their simplicity means they can be used in many different ways while building most of the Pivot to Play® Strengths and Skills Mother Nature designed a child to build in big body physical play.

Think about it.  These climbing standards of every playground:

  • Build vestibular strength as children hang upside down and swing so they can filter important information from the unimportant and develop a focal point for reading.
  • Build proprioceptive strength as they climb and hang so they learn force by putting pressure on their joints.  This helps them put pencil to paper and write as well as build a mental map of their bodies so they understand how to use their bodies in school.
  • Build core, upper body, and grip strength as they manipulate their bodies across the bars.  This helps them use their hands for writing and helps them sit in school with comfort.
  • Require children to cross the midline, use bilateral movement, and hone motor planning and balance.  All of these help build neural connections in the brain making learning, creative, complex, and critical thinking easier.
  • Test and strengthen body, spatial, and directional awareness as kids move their bodies in, over, around, and through the bars.  This helps kids understand how much space their bodies take up and what direction they are going.  In moving this way they internalize and then apply that knowledge so they understand the amount of space a letter or a word takes up on a page when learning to write.
  • Hone temporal awareness as kids master the challenge of hand-over-hand climbing or moving across bars.  Temporal awareness, when internalized in play, helps kids master rhythm and sequence which supports math, language, writing, and logic.

It is impossible to learn these skills or build these strengths at a desk or from a book.  They must be experienced and practiced in the trial and error of play.  And where better than a Jungle Gym or the Monkey Bars?

Now Scheduling: Keynotes, training, staff development, consulting

If you have been to one of our sessions you know how mind-blowing it can be.  When we all speak loudly for more play we can really make a change.  Get your colleagues on the same page and get on our calendar now!  preston@pivottoplay.com