Children don't know better and getting hurt isn't always the best way to learn because their could be permanent consequences
Learning the ropes: why Germany is building risk into its playgrounds (2021)
11–20 of 162 posts
Re: Learning the ropes: why Germany is building risk into its playgrounds (2021)
#12I remember when I was a teen I started noticing how the nanny state had managed to remove all the old swings I used to play with and replaced them with some tiny and safe swings that no one even uses anymore. Children even started wearing yellow safety vests to school all of a sudden. I'm glad there's at least some backlash to this nonsense.
What state manages playground equipment?
Re: Learning the ropes: why Germany is building risk into its playgrounds (2021)
#13It doesn't look like they are building risk into the playgrounds, as much as they are building the feeling of risk. which isn't necessarily a bad thing. This seems like a compromise that should be seen as better, or at least acceptable to both extremes of parents.
"The maximum fall height in the Triitopia structure’s spiderweb is 1.8 metres." That's not a risky fall, if you're falling onto a rope net.
Also, "The Triitopia tower is encased with boards and netting to ensure no child can take a tumble from a height above three metres." Kids used to climb on the outside and on top of tall playground structures like that. But they're making sure this much more difficult to attempt. This is not a criticism, just my observations.
Re: Learning the ropes: why Germany is building risk into its playgrounds (2021)
#14I remember when I was a teen I started noticing how the nanny state had managed to remove all the old swings I used to play with and replaced them with some tiny and safe swings that no one even uses anymore. Children even started wearing yellow safety vests to school all of a sudden. I'm glad there's at least some backlash to this nonsense.
What state manages playground equipment?
Many, if not most, public playgrounds are maintained by the city or municipality in Germany. Here in a larger city they are checked and cleaned weekly.
Re: Learning the ropes: why Germany is building risk into its playgrounds (2021)
#15These things are ubiquitous in Berlin: https://stage.berliner-seilfabrik.com/wp-content/uploads/201...
They're not actually that high to an adult, but I have childhood memories of these seeming somewhat tall and scary. On an average one, a young child can fall 4-6 times their own height (but not straight, you'll get buffered by the structure as you go down).
Re: Learning the ropes: why Germany is building risk into its playgrounds (2021)
#16Children don't know better and getting hurt isn't always the best way to learn because their could be permanent consequences
I don’t know. Our kid frequents these playgrounds and it’s interesting to see how the usage changes over time. The kid quite frequently signals when it thinks something is too high or a slide to steep or whatever. And most kids seem to be rather cautious.
Re: Learning the ropes: why Germany is building risk into its playgrounds (2021)
#17I don't know, kids these days. You should have seen what we had to contend with in the 60s - huge lumps of flesh mangling metal, swinging at terrifying angles, throwing small children off in all directions. And no wimpy rubber mats to catch them. Sometimes, I wonder that I survived.
reminds me of when I was a kid in the UK, there was these places that was called 'funhouses' where kids was supposed to play, I was seriously terrified of dying. I'm unsure if it's my memory and/or if I was just too young
I've heard stories from relatives about a funhouse like that on Coney Island. Supposedly there was a dark maze section with clowns that would walk around and shock you. As I got older I assumed some of it had to be made up. But at least part of the story is corroborated in this article about the Steeplechase Park:
https://www.westland.net/coneyisland/articles/steeplechase2....
Re: Learning the ropes: why Germany is building risk into its playgrounds (2021)
#18I don't know, kids these days. You should have seen what we had to contend with in the 60s - huge lumps of flesh mangling metal, swinging at terrifying angles, throwing small children off in all directions. And no wimpy rubber mats to catch them. Sometimes, I wonder that I survived.
I took a steel see-saw to the face on one of those playgrounds in the 1970’s. My little sister pulled her end down, which caused my end to shoot up unexpectedly. Ouch. Ruined my day for sure.
Re: Learning the ropes: why Germany is building risk into its playgrounds (2021)
#19I remember when I was a teen I started noticing how the nanny state had managed to remove all the old swings I used to play with and replaced them with some tiny and safe swings that no one even uses anymore. Children even started wearing yellow safety vests to school all of a sudden. I'm glad there's at least some backlash to this nonsense.
> Children even started wearing yellow safety vests to school all of a sudden.
Given how many accidents happen on the way to school ("Schulwegunfälle", yes we have a dedicated word for it), it's absolutely necessary. 62k accidents in 2021, and 16 dead kids [1].
A large part of the cause is how absurdly car-centric our cities are - and yet, we're harmless compared to the US.
[1] https://www.dguv.de/de/zahlen-fakten/schuelerunfallgeschehen...
Re: Learning the ropes: why Germany is building risk into its playgrounds (2021)
#20These things are ubiquitous in Berlin: https://stage.berliner-seilfabrik.com/wp-content/uploads/201... They're not actually that high to an adult, but I have childhood memories of these seeming somewhat tall and scary. On an average one, a young child can fall 4-6 times their own height (but not straight, you'll get buffered by the structure as you go down).
I think common in whole germany, but maybe not ubiquitous. I certainly remember them well and in my imagination they were giant!