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As adults, we associate ‘playing’ with children having fun, but play is much more than just a form of entertainment to keep curious young minds busy.
Playing is actually essential to child development as a vehicle for learning new skills in engaging ways and stimulating environments, helping children to understand and connect to the world around them while staying physically active.
Outdoor play equipment, like climbing frames, can provide tools for children to do this in healthy and safe ways – and one feature that’s especially helpful is monkey bars.
Monkey bars offer plenty of different ways to play – keep reading to learn more about how playing on monkey bars can be beneficial for child development!
Risky play on monkey bars
Risky play involves more exciting physical activities that offer a thrill due to an increased level of risk. Not to worry, though – they’re not excessively dangerous!
For example, risky play on monkey bars may involve climbing up the ladder or jumping to grab the bars, then using arm strength to swing across the bars with the goal of reaching the other side without falling to the ground below.
The structure is not too high and an adult will be supervising, but the child gets to challenge themselves and learn about their physical boundaries – giving them the confidence to try different activities and assess levels of risk.
Ways to encourage risky play and the desirable developmental outcomes include:
- Obstacle courses – completing the monkey bars as part of a climbing frame or various activities set up around the garden.
- Timed races – moving at a faster speed to get one from side to the other increases the feeling of risk and sense of accomplishment.
- Relays – encouraging social skills and teamwork by getting children to engage in risky play together through relay races.
Parents or guardians may be worried that this type of play is too risky, but it’s crucial to let children test their limits and gain a sense of independence in doing so.
Fantasy play on monkey bars
Fantasy play or imaginative play is all about children using their creativity to role-play different experiences, constructing worlds and tasks with their imaginations.
Children learn from what they see, hear, and touch all around them, and channelling these experiences into creative role-playing helps them to process these experiences and experiment with decision-making while nurturing their imaginative abilities.
While this often involves using toys like dolls, costumes, or other props, outdoor equipment like monkey bars can help them to expand their creative play even further, giving them more room to explore their evolving ideas – especially when they can ‘play pretend’ with other children.
Examples of fantasy play that one or more children can engage in together include:
- The floor is lava – crossing from one side of the monkey bars to the other without touching the floor, because it’s ‘made of lava’!
- Jungle – pretending to be actual monkeys swinging through the tree tops in the jungle, maybe chasing each other across a river!
- Pirates – spying from the ‘crow’s nest’ at the top of the ladder, crossing from one ship to another to commandeer it, or escaping before being made to walk the plank!
Parents and guardians can encourage kids to re-enact stories they love, whether from books, movies, or television, guiding them to become more adaptable and inventive.
How monkey bars benefit child development
As you can see, outdoor play equipment like monkey bars – with the many different sequences of movement they allow and the creative thinking they encourage – can be a big boost to any child’s development and growth.
Some of the ways that monkey bars enhance physical and cognitive abilities include:
- Physical strength (hand grip, upper body, core, posture)
- Hand-eye coordination and spatial awareness
- Bilateral coordination (using both sides of the body and brain at the same time)
- Problem-solving and collaboration with others
- Improving self-confidence and empathy while expanding vocabulary
- Regulating attention, arousal, and emotional levels
Incorporating monkey bars into everyday playtime can help to target the various developmental needs of your child, all while they have fun and stay physically fit.
Why not invest in some of your own, so your child or children can enjoy all the benefits of playing on monkey bars in the safety and security of your own home?
You’ll find that there is a wide range of monkey bars to choose from, whether they’re a stand-alone piece of equipment or part of a larger climbing frame or jungle gym – the more features they have, the more opportunities for risky and fantasy play!
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