01 / Play broadly
Play supports healthy development
The American Academy of Pediatrics recognizes play as important to cognitive, language, social-emotional, physical and self-regulatory development.
Strong evidence
Why play? / The evidence
We like playgrounds.
The research does, too.*
*With some important caveats.
There is strong evidence that play matters to healthy childhood development. There is strong and growing evidence that richer playground environments can increase physical activity.
There is encouraging evidence around adventurous play, natural environments, caregiver experience, social interaction and well-designed public space.
There is also plenty we still do not know. We would rather tell you that than turn every correlation into a miracle.
The evidence board
What the research says.
02 / Playgrounds
Richer playgrounds can increase physical activity
Supported by systematic reviews and a 2025 meta-analysis of 28 studies involving 19,753 young people.
Strong evidence
03 / Outdoor play environments
Variety matters
Fixed equipment, natural areas and loose materials are associated with more active or varied play. There is no single proven design formula.
Promising evidence
04 / Outdoor play
Challenge can have value
Age-appropriate adventurous outdoor play shows generally favorable relationships with activity and other outcomes, though study quality varies.
Promising evidence
05 / Playgrounds
Caregivers need a place, too
Seating, shade and gathering spaces may affect caregiver comfort and interaction. Playground-specific research is still limited.
We're still learning
06 / Parks, not playgrounds alone
Better parks can attract more users
Natural experiments on park renovations show increased use in some places, but outcomes vary by location and intervention.
Promising evidence
07 / Green space, not playgrounds alone
Nature can be part of play
Broader green-space research finds encouraging associations with children's wellbeing and development. It does not prove that adding trees to a playground improves mental health.
Strong evidence means a well-supported claim in its stated scope. Promising evidence is encouraging but not conclusive. We're still learning means the direct playground evidence remains limited. None of these labels is a score for an individual design.
Claims we won't make.
That playgrounds raise property values, reduce crime or directly improve children's mental health. Broader research on parks, public space and green space is interesting; it cannot establish these as effects of building a playground.
Access to parks / United States
28 million American kids.
Live without a park within a 10-minute walk of home.
We are not going to solve that with one playground. We could start building.
This is a park-access estimate, not a playground-access count. Source: Trust for Public Land, ParkScore methodology ↗
Inclusion is more than entry
Not access to play. Access to the play.
Getting onto the playground isn't the same as getting to play. Accessibility is essential, but a ramp into a place where a child cannot meaningfully participate is not the finish line.
Exceptional playgrounds should aim for meaningful participation across different physical, sensory, developmental and social needs—not just minimum compliance.
Evidence: promising, based on a relatively small playground-specific research base.
Places and people
You can't parachute in a slide and call it community development.
Renovated parks have attracted more users in some natural experiments. But the gains have not been equal in every neighborhood. Park research is not the same as proof that a new playground will transform a community.
Location matters. Maintenance matters. Access matters. The surrounding park matters. And the people who live there need a meaningful role in deciding what gets built.
Our design standard
Worth building. Worth staying for.
The research should help us choose which playgrounds are worth building—not just justify building more of them.
01
Move.
Climb, run, balance, swing, scramble, slide and explore. Movement through play, not exercise equipment for children.
02
Choose.
Offer more than one path, level or interpretation. Leave room for children's own ideas.
03
Risk.
Include graduated, age-appropriate challenges within responsible safety standards.
04
Imagine.
Make space for open-ended play, hideaways, tunnels, landforms and storytelling.
05
Nature.
Where appropriate, let trees, shade, planting, water, sand and topography be part of the play.
06
Belong.
Create room for cooperative play, gathering and repeated neighborhood encounters.
07
Include.
Accessibility is the minimum. Aim for meaningful participation across abilities, needs and ages.
08
Stay.
Consider shade, seating, sightlines, water, facilities and places for caregivers to rest or join in.
09
Connect.
Think about safe crossings, walking, transit, cycling and links to the surrounding neighborhood.
10
Listen.
Children and residents should help shape the place. Kids should help decide what it becomes.
Research honesty
What we know. And what we don't.
The evidence for play is substantial. The evidence that richer playground environments can increase physical activity is increasingly strong. Research also gives us good reasons to value challenge, choice, nature, inclusion and social spaces for caregivers.
Researchers cannot currently tell us that a particular multimillion-dollar playground will improve mental health by X percent, increase social cohesion by Y percent, raise property values or reduce crime. Those numbers would be satisfying. They would also be made up.
Extraordinary public places. Honest reasons for building them.
Play matters. Public space matters. Children deserve more of both.