Occupational Therapy

Playground Therapy

Colleen Beck OTR/L

Colleen Beck, OTR/L is a pediatric occupational therapist and the owner and author of The OT Toolbox website. She manages all of The OT Toolbox social media accounts and runs the popular newsletter. Colleen created The OT Toolbox in 2011 and since then has written thousands of blog posts designed to support therapy providers, educators, parents, counselors, admin, and caregivers in promoting the healthy development of kids. Check out Colleen's blog posts below:

by Colleen Beck OTR/L
May 24, 2016

Whether in the school environment or accessing playgrounds in the community, it is important to discuss playground therapy as a tool for building skills. Therapy playground strategies can support development in many different areas. Here, we’ll cover how to incorporate the playground in therapy sessions, as well as playground equipment.

You’ll also want to dive into specifics about sensory integration at the playground and balance at the playground. Another resource that is helpful for some individuals is our article on sensory diets at the playground.

Playground therapy

The playground offers a unique environment for building skills. There is so much development and therapeutic growth that can happen in an environment like a playground.

Let’s take a look at the various areas of development that can be targeted through play on a playground:

Gross motor skills
Strength
Coordination
Balance
Endurance
Hand-eye coordination
Body awareness
Sensory input
Behavior and behavioral problems
Direction following
Executive functioning skills
Bilateral coordination
Motor planning
Sensory integration
Self-esteem
Cooperation

This skillset is powerful and it’s all through the power of play!

Playground Therapy Equipment

With it’s slides and swings, surroundings, slope, surfaces, and colors, no two playgrounds are exactly alike. Just as all playgrounds are different, the childhood development that can occur using the equipment at a playground is vast.

Some important playground therapy equipment include:

Slides
Swings (regular, disk, tire swing, platform swing, etc.)
Balance beams
Stairs
Climbing wall
Climbing platform
Foam sensory stations
Wheelchair access
Ladders
Climbing areas
Monkey bars
Ramps
Auditory input stations
Fine motor areas
Musical areas
Cognitive skill areas

All of these spaces on the playground can be used through free play to support development. It’s through the occupation of play that children of all abilities develop.

Creative play including pretend play and interaction with peers on the playground can promote development on a typical weekend trip to the park, or during recess time on the playground. Occupational therapy practitioners uniquely promote functional performance and play is both the therapy tool as well as the target for development.

Using playground equipment in therapy goals can also be used to support a variety of diagnoses.

Not only that, but a playground is a supportive and community friendly space that allows caregivers to carryover recommendations in a shared and accessible space.

The playground offers a unique environment. There is so much development and therapeutic growth that can happen in an environment like a playground. With it’s slides and swings, surroundings, slope, surfaces, and colors, no two playgrounds are exactly alike. Just as all playgrounds are different, the childhood development that can occur using the equipment at a playground is vast.

Ultimate Guide to the Playground

The links below will guide you through childhood development of capabilities at the playground, the fine motor development that can occur at a park, gross motor requirements for safety and independence, sensory therapy strategies that can be done at the playground, modification ideas, playground games for extending therapy, rules to break for developing progress, social skills that occur at the playground, and visual skill development that can develop at a playground.

This is literally your ultimate guide to the playground!

Playground Development

When playing on the playground, so many skills develop. We covered this in our resource on sensory play using playground equipment because motor skills and movement are intrinsically connected to sensory skills, meaning sensory-motor! You’ll love this resource on developmental progression of playground skills.

Fine Motor Skills are also developed at the playground, through use of slides, swings, and other items. We know that development progresses from gross motor to fine motor and proximally to distally, but did you know the true value of climbing, sliding, balancing, and using those playground tools? Check out this blog post for more information on fine motor skills at the playground.

Modifying Playground Equipment for Development

Neighborhood parks, school playgrounds, and even natural play areas (hiking trails, beaches, state parks, forests, and the backyard) are in every community. What a resource we have within minutes from every home! But, when it comes to playground equipment, not all are created equal.

Sometimes, we need to adjust our plans or activities at the park or playground. And that’s ok! A swing may not be developmentally appropriate for every individual. A climbing device or elevated play area may not work for the needs of every individual. What we can do, however, is adjust or modify the equipment we do have access to.

This way, we can use the resources available as best we can while promoting developmental progression and achievement of individual goals. That is exactly what we do as occupational therapy professionals!

Check out this blog on modifying playground equipment. It’s a great tool to add to your therapy toolbox!

This blog post includes utilizing playground equipment to support visual processing skills on the playground
This blog post has social skills activities while at the park or playground

Playground Games

As occupational therapists, we harness the environment and address any factors that impact functional participation. This includes using our primary occupations. For kids, that primary occupation is PLAY!

By incorporating gross motor games, scavenger hunts, I Spy, and other games, the playground becomes a place to practice through play in so many aspects of child development.