Environmental design students at CU Boulder are taking their education out of the classroom and into the community to design and build a neighborhood playground.
The project involves building a play area for an affordable housing community in Lakewood, Colorado, whose current playground doesn鈥檛 adequately serve the 67 children who make up more than 50 percent of the population in that community.听
Along the way, students get hands-on building experience and learn communication skills. And, they鈥檙e learning that the youngsters have definite opinions about the equipment that should go in their playground.
The project team consists of 18 students in the third year of the Environmental Design Program, which includes specialties in architecture, landscape architecture and urban planning. Two students on the team are juniors Kristina Lu and Jenice Forrister. Lu鈥檚 emphasis is on architecture and Forrister鈥檚 is on design studies.
鈥淲e showed the kids and adults pictures of playgrounds from around the world, and they picked what they liked,鈥� Lu said. 鈥淲e learned that swings, rope features and monkey bars are a big hit.鈥�
The playground features specially designed play equipment the children requested. The plan addresses safety concerns and provides seating where parents can keep an eye on children while meeting and talking with their neighbors. To incorporate nature into the design, a sensory garden will include plants that attract butterflies and birds. Soccer is popular with 7- to 12-year-olds, so soccer goals will be added.听
The ENVD team believes that play is a right, not a privilege, that safe playgrounds should be available to all children regardless of a child鈥檚 socio-economic status, said Jeremy Ehly, instructor of the studio design class.
鈥淭his project started when we were approached by community members,鈥� Ehly said. 鈥淚鈥檝e been interested in doing a playground, since I have a 2-year-old son. I鈥檝e taken him to several playgrounds, but I鈥檝e been uninspired with what鈥檚 out there. So, I immediately jumped on this, because it involves a variety of disciplines the students can learn.鈥�
This is the first hands-on, design-build project launched by this team of ENVD students, and they are excited to see their design evolve from concept to completion over the course of the semester.
Community playgrounds provide children with opportunities for play, and promote healthy lifestyles and encourage interaction among neighbors while improving the quality of life for the entire community.听
The design is based on children鈥檚 drawings of what they wanted in a playground, created at a special event held earlier in the semester, as well as from parents鈥� suggestions. It is important to the student team that the community be invested in and proud of the final product. Rather than going in and building what the students assume the community needs, they connected with the adults and children and sought their ideas.
鈥淥ne day when we went to the site, there were kids playing and they watched us set up,鈥� Lu said. 鈥淭hey weren鈥檛 shy. They came over and asked what we were doing. They looked at the model of the new playground and got so excited. The adults are grateful that we are putting so much effort into providing the kids with a place to play safely.鈥澨�
Because their budget is so low, the team is integrating some of the existing playground structures in to the new design. And children who have grown up playing on the old structures鈥攁s meager as they are鈥攈ave formed an emotional attachment to them.听
Forrister said she likes the idea of a class project that lets them do something for the neighborhood.
鈥淲e鈥檙e doing this for the kids,鈥� she said. 鈥淎s a kid, I went to so many amazing playgrounds. I鈥檓 taking my experiences from when I was a kid and working those ideas into this project. It鈥檚 important to give kids a good place to play. What鈥檚 there now is dilapidated and not a playable structure. Hopefully, we鈥檙e designing something that hasn鈥檛 been seen before and that they鈥檒l love.鈥�
To help purchase the building supplies, the student team has launched a crowdfunding campaign. Find out more by reading .听
