Skedaddle

As designers, we cherish when we can get the "real scoop" on what people think of our designs... or on the designs of others. The final arbiter of whether something is successful comes from the user.

We just found out about a play group in Anchorage that goes to a different park, play area, trail, etc... each week. The person who organizes the group writes up their trips. We love the fact that the blog acts as a local review for our natural and playspaces. Have a look... maybe do the same in your community:

Inventing Games

Clif had an interesting contest where they asked kids to invent games. Here is a link to the finalists: Clif Backyard Kid Games Contest

Pavement Games

Pavement games can be a great way to add inexpensive play opportunities to a playground. This is a school playground in Edmonton where they had a decent variety including some curriculum based fun (a calculator?). The fun of some of these is guessing how they're supposed to be played... that is, IF there is a way they're supposed to be played.

The Dream Pipe

Click on the image to be taken to the Kill Screen blog to read an interview with the designer of Schulberg Playground in Wiesbaden.

Cementland

An very interesting blog post from Kaboom about Bob Cassilly and his playspace development:

http://kaboom.org/blog/cementland_where_kids_can_do_things_are_normally_illegal

"True to its name, Cementland is an abandoned cement factory in St. Louis that Cassilly was vigilantly working to transform into an unconventional playspace and tourist attraction. Tragically, it was while he was working there that he died at the hands of a bulldozer on Monday at age 61."