Boost your playground by providing kids with many ways to move that build healthy, strong bodies and good social skills. Well-planned playgrounds give kids the chance to climb, swing, slide and bounce on the equipment with their friends. With the right additions, you can let kids move in these ways safely.
By installing bouncing equipment, you’ll satisfy kids’ need to jump. Bouncing components give kids a way to unleash their ample energy while building valuable coordination skills and balance.
Jumping is also great cardio because it gets the blood pumping and improves circulation, so kids can get their heart rate up while they enjoy springing up and down on bouncing equipment.
Playgrounds have several options for integrating bouncing equipment into existing or new equipment setups. There are even themed options if you want a more imaginative way for kids to get jumping. These modern designs limit fall distances to allow kids to jump to their hearts’ content without ever being far from the ground. Plus, built-in rebound control features let kids bounce without launching them into the play area. Bouncing has never been more fun with the many options available today.
Here are some examples of equipment options to give kids the benefits of bouncing in your playground:
Integrate a bouncing drawbridge into your castle-themed play area. With this drawbridge, kids can pretend to be knights or dragons crossing over a moat into a castle.
The bridge bobs up and down when kids jump on it, adding to the fun of the creative play.
While promoting imaginative play, this drawbridge also has many practical features. Instead of using a coil spring beneath, this drawbridge has a curved spring that prevents little fingers from getting caught between spring coils. The spring design also prevents the drawbridge from catapulting kids off the surface. Designed for kids ages 5 through 12, this bouncy drawbridge works well with other castle-themed playground equipment.
If you prefer a playground with pirates instead of princesses, consider the bouncing Walk the Plank play structure.
This bouncing plank fits in with other nautical-themed playground equipment. Kids can enjoy creative, sea-themed play as they pretend to walk themselves or others along this plank. They can also imagine Caribbean tides or sharks circling underneath.
As with the bouncing drawbridge, this piece of equipment limits its movement, so kids bounce without launching themselves off. It features a fall height of two feet, so make sure to have appropriate surfacing material beneath this plank after installation. Choose this option for playgrounds for kids between five and 12.
Bring the fun of video games to the playground with real-life equipment options such as giant buttons they can bounce on.
Let kids pretend that they are video game characters bouncing on buttons with the Bounce Button playground component. They can also pretend these buttons will launch them into the sky as they imagine themselves as flying superheroes. The only limit for how kids use this button is their endless imaginations.
This springy component uses the child’s weight to determine the range of motion and bounce height. Smaller children don’t bounce as high. It has a modest fall height of 1 foot, 7 inches and a textured surface for surer footing. However, as with all components, always ensure proper installation over approved playground surfacing.
The U-Bounce is an innovative bouncer that allows all kids to enjoy the exercise benefits of bouncing. It is a fully accessible bouncer that lets kids enjoy the springing motion whether they are seated or standing. The rubber platform has a slip-resistant surface to keep kids on top of the U-Bounce as they move. Plus, the rubber absorbs shocks, making every bounce easier on the kid’s joints.
With the U-Bounce, kids can enjoy bouncy fun regardless of their ability. This component lets kids bounce either seated or standing, making it an essential addition to any accessible playground, giving all kids the chance to bounce.
Kids become surfers in their imaginations with the Nucleo playground bouncer. With this bouncy piece of equipment, kids align their feet on the platform above each of the springs and use their bodies to move themselves back and forth and bounce up and down. Since this piece does not have a specific theme, kids can create their own stories around what they are doing while playing on the Nucleo.
Each kid will have a unique experience with this piece of equipment because the range of motion depends on the child’s weight. Kids between ages five to 12 can enjoy this innovative bouncer. With the Nucleo, kids build coordination and balance skills.
Bouncing equipment on playgrounds does much more for kids than providing a unique way to play. Through the fun of bouncing and jumping on playground equipment, kids can gain multiple benefits for their physical and mental health. Plus, growing kids develop vital skills that will help them throughout their lives. See why bouncing on playground equipment sets itself apart from formalized trampoline jumping in a gym. Here are some of the developmental, cognitive and physical health benefits of bouncing.
Bouncing encourages active play and can help build endurance. Some kids may not be capable of physically strenuous play for very long because they have yet to develop their bodies to endure sustained activity.
Kids need to get regular exercise to build their endurance. However, they may not be willing to choose formal, tedious exercises like jogging or exercise classes. Bouncing on a playground is more fun and can keep kids going long enough to help them to build endurance.
When they grow up with habits of regular movement such as bouncing, kids will find that they can play longer without getting fatigued. Therefore, kids who bounce on playgrounds can stick with physical activities later in life to get more health benefits.
Bouncing on playground equipment requires kids’ brains to coordinate the movement and positioning of multiple muscle groups. They need to keep their feet under them and the rest of their limbs in place to support balance. While this process occurs subconsciously for kids, bouncing can still give their coordination skills a boost.
Playground pieces such as the Nucleo encourage balance and coordination because kids can move in many directions while they bounce. The kids need to coordinate their core muscles with their leg positioning and balance to stay on the equipment and keep bouncing.
Kids need to develop coordination of large and small muscle groups. Bouncing helps them to learn better control over the large muscle groups that they use to keep upright and move their bodies during the activity.
With playground bouncers, the activity is more fun because kids can make up stories about what they do as they use them. For instance, kids can engage in imaginative play with themed bounce boards like the Walk the Plank or castle drawbridge.
As they exercise their bodies while bouncing, they also work their imaginations. These bouncing methods help kids learn creativity in ways that formal gym classes cannot do. Plus, when kids play with others on the playground, their collaborations encourage even greater creativity through collective storytelling. Building creativity is just as important for childhood development as exercise. One works the mind while the other improves the body.
When kids do the same activity, they can feel more satisfied by being part of a community. With accessible bouncers, like the U-Bounce, all kids can engage in bouncing. When kids with varying abilities can play on the same equipment, their differences become less important. Accessible bouncing equipment can help all kids feel included and satisfied with their play experiences.
Bouncers with the capacity to support several kids at once can help kids feel connected to others through common play. They can make new friendships on the playground by sharing equipment.
During childhood, the bones continue to grow and develop. Regular weight-bearing exercise can help to strengthen the bones as they grow. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that kids get regular activity that strengthens bones, naming jumping as a specific bone-building activity.
Bouncing puts the child’s weight on their bones with each jump. However, because bouncing playground equipment uses springs, kids’ joints are cushioned from the full force of each jump. Therefore, even kids who may have occasional joint pain from high-impact exercises might be able to enjoy bouncing. Plus, with the ability to bounce up and down on playground equipment, kids can engage in a bone-strengthening exercise that still feels like play.
Kids may not like to attend workout classes or go to the gym. However, they can still get regular exercise. Playgrounds offer kids the chance to engage in free play. Through unstructured play, they can exercise at their own pace and do the activities they like the most.
Bouncing is fun for most kids. Consequently, they may be likely to get a workout through bouncing on playground equipment they find fun. When kids want to move their bodies, they are likely to stay moving longer, boosting the benefits of exercise. Plus, with fun workout choices on playground bouncers, kids may find a love for physical movement that sticks with them as they grow up.
The heart is a muscle that needs regular use to keep it strong. Cardiovascular workouts get the heart beating faster and the lungs breathing deeper. In fact, a 2019 study published in the official journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics found that three to five-year-old kids who engaged in moderate to vigorous physical activity had better cardiovascular health.
The study followed the kids for three years and measured elements of heart and blood vessel health, such as hardening of the arteries. Researchers found that kids who had regular physical activity had less stiffening of the arteries, a condition that can cause problems later in life.
While the study did not outline the specific types of moderate to vigorous activity the kids engaged in, bouncing counts as one of those types of movement. Consequently, playground bouncers could contribute to better heart health even for young kids.
Playground equipment encourages group play. While engaged in play with others, kids learn to cooperate in their activities. For instance, during imaginative play, kids work together to create a common story for the entire group to follow. Through this collaboration and cooperation, kids learn valuable social skills.
How can bouncing equipment promote cooperation? Playground items such as the bouncing drawbridge or Walk the Plank have themes to encourage imaginative play. Through this encouragement, kids can work together with a common theme in mind, making cooperation easier. Starting with a bouncer designed as a ship’s plank, kids can start from the premise of a ship at sea and go from there in creating a story for their group play.
When moving, kids need to be aware of what is around them. Bouncing on playground equipment helps them build spatial awareness because they must be mindful of where their bodies are in space and watch out for others on the playground. Developing spatial awareness can help kids to improve their coordination and body movements.
Exercise during the day can help to improve sleep quality at night. Parents will often bring their young kids to the playground before nap time to wear them out, so they more easily go to sleep. The same can be true of older kids who may have trouble getting to sleep at night. Regular aerobic activity during the day can help them to relax at night and sleep better.
Exercise can improve mood through the release of endorphins from the brain. The CDC links immediate improvements to mood, attention and memory following a single activity session. Consequently, schools looking to help their students succeed in the classroom will benefit from installing multiple playground equipment options, including bouncers, that encourage moderate to vigorous activity.
The better mood bouncers encourage can also extend to the home for kids using neighborhood playgrounds. They will feel better after bouncing play on the playground due to the improvements in mood brought by vigorous physical activity. Kids, their teachers and parents will all feel a little better from the mood improvements brought by bouncing on playground equipment.
Exercise can improve metabolic rates and calorie burning to help kids use the food they eat for fuel. With better metabolism, kids can maintain a healthy weight for their height while also reaping the other benefits of bouncing.
Playground activities like using bouncing equipment help kids meet the CDC’s recommended 60-minutes of daily moderate to vigorous movement. Kids who engage in this level of exercise usually attain healthy weights. Providing kids with bouncing equipment gives them a fun way to engage in calorie-burning, metabolism-boosting activity.
Balance is important to helping kids stay coordinated on their feet. Balance beams are one way to help kids learn to keep their limbs in place and their bodies balanced as they move. However, bouncing can also provide balance training.
Through jumping on playground bouncers, kids learn to stay balanced on the equipment. The balancing skill builds even more efficiently when they use bouncing equipment such as the Nucleo or Bounce Button that move in different directions. While using these types of bouncers, kids must keep their balance as their feet move around.
According to the CDC, kids in school who regularly move at moderate to vigorous rates for at least an hour a day have better attention immediately after exercising. This improved attention leads to more kids on task with fewer behavior problems in the classroom.
Even during vacation and on the weekends, better attention after engaging in moderate movement can help kids focus on whatever requires their attention — whether it’s instructions from their parents or family movie night. When kids bounce during their playground time, they get the necessary movement that can help improve their attention spans.
Exercise that gets the heart rate up also improves breathing. The body needs to breathe deeper to provide itself with the extra oxygen needed during physical activity. Consequently, kids give their diaphragm and lungs a workout when they work their hearts during aerobic exercise.
Bouncing on playground equipment is one way to help boost heart and lung function through exercise. Plus, as the kids spring up and down on the bouncer and breathe deeper, extra oxygen goes throughout their bodies, including the muscles they work during the bouncing. This oxygenation of the tissues can help them to feel more invigorated.
Kids don’t need to lift weights to build strong muscles. In fact, activities that use the body’s weight can build muscles. The CDC recommends muscle-building activities three times a week, such as climbing, to improve muscle tone.
Bouncing on playground equipment is another way to build strong muscles. Kids often have to climb onto the equipment to reach it. Plus, they work their legs while jumping. Additionally, kids can work their core muscles to help them maintain balance and coordination while bouncing. Though bouncing shouldn’t be the only muscle-building exercise kids do, it can fit nicely into a routine of play that works the entire body through different activities.
Getting outside into the fresh air for play is another way that bouncing equipment on playgrounds stands apart from indoor gyms with formalized exercise. Going outside to bounce on playground equipment can expose kids to sunlight for producing vitamin D. This vitamin helps build strong bones. To make enough vitamin D through sunlight, kids need to spend 15 to 30 minutes outside daily.
Outdoor free play on a playground with bouncing components lets kids bounce, play and shout as they have fun. This type of fun is unparalleled in other places.
Give every kid the chance to enjoy the health, fitness and mental benefits of bouncing. Check out the playground components at Playworld that use bouncing as an element of play. With options for themed and generic bouncers for any play area, you will find the right choice to fit in with the aesthetic of your playground.
Learn more about getting bouncing equipment and other playground components and accessories by contacting us at Playworld today. With the right equipment, you provide kids with a fun play space. Plus, the kids who enjoy your play area will have the chance to start the rest of their lives by associating exercise with fun and making friends on the playground.