What is an “Adventure Playground”?
We call Wild Play Woods an “adventure playground” because that sounds nicer to grownups. But the original term for this concept was “junk playground”, an idea first promoted in the 1930s by Carl Theodor Sørensen, a Danish landscape architect.
You know that parental lament about giving your child a fancy gift and they play with the box instead? Sørensen noticed that kids wanted to play anywhere but the fancy playgrounds he designed! After watching some kids playing at a construction site he began to imagine “A junk playground in which children could create and shape, dream and imagine a reality”.
We think that sounds AMAZING! Wild Play Woods is an adventure playground, and we take the “junk” part seriously!
This type of playground starts with an area fenced off and set aside for children. Inside, children can play in a wild and free manner, building and shaping the environment based on their own goals and imaginations.
To help the kids explore their creative vision, the space is full of what is termed “loose parts”.
Loose parts are things that can be played with, manipulated, and combined in open-ended ways. They can be used over and over again in different projects. When children have access to loose parts, their inventiveness and creativity expand. They experience the magic of discovery and the challenge of problem-solving.
The loose parts at Wild Play Woods include:
- Natural resources: dirt, stones, water, sticks, and leaves
- Building materials: boards, rope, sheet metal
- Scrap materials: old tires, pipes, pallets
- Containers: bags, bins, boxes, buckets
- Draping materials: tarps, canvas cloth, shower curtains
- Small trinkets: coins, gems, stones, figurines
- Art supplies: paper, paint, chalk
- Tools: trowels, shovels, saws
Working & Playing Outdoors
Wild Play Woods takes place 100% outdoors, and we meet in all weather.
Our space includes open field areas and a large wooded area. We play alongside the plants and animals that live here.
We have one large canvas tent for when children want to get out of the rain, and it can be heated for especially cold days. In our experience, this space is used for only moments at a time! The kids come in, warm up or cool down, and then they’re right back out there, no matter the weather!
We also have a privacy tent with a simple bucket-style composting toilet.
The remainder of our space is wide open. That is, unless the kids build themselves a new structure! Our playscape is always changing based on the vision of the kids.
