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Poster

Description

As children spend majority of their time indoors in sedentary activities, their outdoor play experiences become daunting and children reduce their connections to nature. Less time outdoors creates less free play and their outdoor play experiences, as limited as they have become, are crucial for their development. Sometimes considered the experts of their children, parents have become lost in the voices when it is time to make decisions about children’s play at institutions. This article aims to explore the neglected voices of parents when considering children’s outdoor play environments. This study not only adds to the growing research in the importance of promoting outdoor play and the impact the designs of spaces may have on children’s learning, but also provides a connection between children’s outdoor play at home, at school, and in the community. This study represents perspectives of mothers living in a small town in Canada, where their perspectives are frequently not considered in literature. Results suggested that adults have leadership over children’s outdoor play and children may currently be limited in play outdoors and action may need to be taken to ensure that the perspectives and values of educators, parents, community stakeholders, and children are equally promoted.

As children spend majority of their time indoors in sedentary activities, their outdoor play experiences become daunting and children reduce their connections to nature. Less time outdoors creates less free play and their outdoor play experiences, as limited as they have become, are crucial for their development. Sometimes considered the experts of their children, parents have become lost in the voices when it is time to make decisions about children’s play at institutions. This article aims to explore the neglected voices of parents when considering children’s outdoor play environments. This study not only adds to the growing research in the importance of promoting outdoor play and the impact the designs of spaces may have on children’s learning, but also provides a connection between children’s outdoor play at home, at school, and in the community. This study represents perspectives of mothers living in a small town in Canada, where their perspectives are frequently not considered in literature. Results suggested that adults have leadership over children’s outdoor play and children may currently be limited in play outdoors and action may need to be taken to ensure that the perspectives and values of educators, parents, community stakeholders, and children are equally promoted.

Publication Date

4-6-2020

Keywords

outdoor play, environment, playground, parents, outdoor play environments

Disciplines

Social and Behavioral Sciences

Faculty

Faculty of Applied Health & Community Studies (FAHCS)

Terms of Use

Terms of Use for Works posted in SOURCE.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.

The Design of Outdoor Play Environments: A Parental Perspective

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