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Play Today

A family that plays together stays together

Posted by Kerala Taylor on May 8, 2012
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We talk a lot about allowing kids time for unstructured, unsupervised play, but we know there are other ways to play. We also support kids playing under the guidance of coaches, teachers, and of course, parents.

In fact, making time for family play is critical to family well-being. Playing with your kids can mean chasing them around the playground, challenging them to chess, or building sandlcastles together. But parents can also inject a playful spirit into routine chores and activities, like chopping veggies for dinner, shopping at the grocery store, or walking home from school.

Does your family need more play? This video, made possible by Foresters, will show you why it's important and how you can make family play a priority. Tell us how your family plays together in the comments section below!

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5 creative outdoor activities for Screen-Free Week

Posted by Kerala Taylor on May 2, 2012
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Yes, it's Screen-Free Week, which begs the question: What are you doing in front of a screen?

But wait! Before you go, take a minute to get inspired by these creative outdoor activities from some of our favorite bloggers. For more awesome ideas, see our Screen-Free Ideas for Parents Pinterest board.

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Why not turn a vacant house into a giant ball pit?

Posted by Kerala Taylor on May 1, 2012
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According to New Orleans artist Josh Ente, there's no reason why not. Abandoned houses denote ruin and despair. Ball pits, by contrast, are bright, happy places, full of gleeful children. Josh says that since Hurricane Katrina, the number of vacant housing units in New Orleans has doubled, and he, for one, is sick of seeing homes in his neighborhood left to slowly decay.

So Josh is taking action. Having successfully raised funds on Kickstarter, he is now busy renovating a vacant house and purchasing the raw materials. Learn more about his project here:

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Our favorite dangerous playgrounds

Posted by Kerala Taylor on April 24, 2012
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Are today's "safe" playgrounds really any safer?

In honor of National Playground Safety Week, we present our favorite "dangerous" playgrounds--that is, playgrounds that make no secret of the risks they present. Interestingly, the perception that a playground is "safe" may cause children (and parents) to act carelessly, potentially leading to injury. By contrast, when risks are obvious, children are likely to proceed more cautiously.

Knowing that the injury rates on Adventure Playgrounds, which are depicted in some of the following slides, are not substantively different from those on "standard" playgrounds, we have to ask ourselves: Which hurt our children more? Playgrounds that bore them, or playgrounds that challenge and engage?

For more on risk and play, read our CEO Darell Hammond's Huffington Post piece, "Dangerous Playgrounds Are Good for Your Children." For more mouthwatering photos, see our Dangerous Playgrounds Pinterest board.

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How to give the perfect high five

Posted by Kerala Taylor on April 19, 2012
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We at KaBOOM! are big fans of the high five. After all, we work for an organization with an exclamation point in its name -- naturally, we're an enthusiastic and positive bunch. But it wasn't until our recent annual Play Academy that many of us realized our high fives just weren't up to par.

Luckily, staffers Naudy Martinez and Allie Farrington stepped in to save the day. Their enlightening presentation taught us common high five pitfalls as well as advanced high five techniques.

As we're sure you're aware, today is National High Five Day. So before you go around doling out potentially defective and artless high fives, please take a moment to perfect your skills:

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This fourth grader gets it. Why don't our schools?

Posted by Kerala Taylor on April 18, 2012
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Kids don't have to think very hard about why they need to play. They just need the time and space to do it.

Even so, kids seem to intuitively understand that while play is first and foremost about having fun, it's also about challenging oneself and learning from failure. As we continue to be baffled by school policy makers and administrators who are slashing recess and other play opportunities, fourth graders like Diego remind us of the important life lessons that our playgrounds have to offer.

Here is his eloquent ode to monkey bars:

Monkey Bars

You’ve taught me a lot of good lessons

You’ve taught me to be braver than I am

To swing out as far as I can

To keep pushing forward

To move one step at a time

To fall into a heap in the dirt

And then get up and try again

Monkey Bars, you’ve shown me the stars

- By Diego, 4th grade
 

Diego is a student in the Writers in the Schools (WITS) program, where this poem was originally featured.

Photo by Andy Schultz (cc).

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What if this kid had gone to soccer camp instead?

Posted by Kerala Taylor on April 11, 2012
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We don't have anything against soccer -- or soccer camp, for that matter. But the video, "Caine's Arcade," that has been madly circulating around the Internet is a stunning testament to the power of boredom. We've written before about how our quest to keep our children stimulated at all hours of the day -- whether through scheduled activities or screen-based enterntainment -- fails to give them the down time and breathing room they need to nurture their creative juices.

Had this 9-year-old boy spent his summer in sports camp or in front of the TV, he never would have felt compelled to look at a pile of discarded cardboard boxes and imagine alternate possibilities. Before you rush to plan your children's summer, take a moment to watch this video. If you've already seen it, watch it again!

And last thing: Can we reiterate how much we love cardboard boxes?

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Take a trip to Kangaroo Land

Posted by Kerala Taylor on April 11, 2012
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We are staunch advocates of recess, but how many adults truly remember what recess is all about? It isn't just 20 minutes of mindless running and screaming. It's a time to create imaginary worlds, take on new personas, make friendships, break friendships, learn new skills, scrape a knee, engage in mischief, and much more.

"Recess Stories," a web series that bases its episodes on true stories, captures the delightful complexity of life on the playground. Take a look:

Please, remind us: Why are we taking this away from our kids?

See more episodes at recessstories.com.

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