Research Activities
You are about to embark on a journey in which the drive will be just as much fun as the destination. It will be thrilling, frustrating, inspiring, empowering and scary ― sometimes all at once! Luckily, the road ahead of you is a well-traveled one. KaBOOM! has guided thousands of communities through the process of building safe community playspaces, and we've created the Road Map to put all our experience at your fingertips. All you need to bring is firm commitment and can-do enthusiasm!
Throughout your journey, you'll encounter eight mile markers, each representing a definable goal and a new phase in the process. The activities listed under each mile marker can be completed in any order, or all at once! Read through each one carefully so you'll know what's ahead. If you're excited by the idea of motivating your community to invest in and build a new playspace, but you have yet to take any concrete action, you're at Mile Marker 1: Research. Cast your idea net wide and explore all destinations and itineraries that appeal to you. The more you learn during this phase, the better equipped you'll be to plan a smooth and successful playspace journey. Before you can Believe It, Plan It, or Build It, you've got to Learn It, so get in the driver's seat and buckle up!
Research Play and Community-Built Playspace Projects
If someone were to ask you why they should invest time or money into building a new playspace, what would you say? Many people take play for granted, or see it as a luxury that few can afford. But active play is a necessity, not only for a child's physical, emotional and social development, but also for that child's right to a childhood that is free of adult pressures and expectations. As children grow into young adulthood, their need for active, challenging play is just as acute, and youth playspaces like skateparks and sports fields provide healthy outlets for physical activity and means for personal expression. Community playspaces also serve adults, acting as social gathering places and centers for recreational programming.
As you begin your project, it's a good idea to learn about the benefits of healthy community-built playspaces. Open the links below or visit the KaBOOM! Resource Library for a complete collection of useful statistics, case studies and project materials. Become an advocate of play!
Research Play Equipment
Children and youth in your community will be glad to tell you which equipment is fun ― save that for Design Day! Before then, it's your job to decide which kind of equipment is right for your community. Your considerations will include cost-effectiveness, suitability to site conditions, quality and the ability to host a variety of play activities. Good playspaces need to be age-appropriate and challenging, because what's fun for a ten-year-old might be dangerous for a four-year-old! Use the charts below to gather information and get yourself a foundation of knowledge:
Create a Project Timeline
It will be easier for you and your committee members to stay motivated and focused if you commit to a timeline up front, even if you end up revising it along the way. Open-ended projects tend to lose steam as people get pulled in different directions. We recommend that you allow at least three months for the planning process, but your timeline will depend entirely upon your community assets, involvement and the ambition of your project. The KaBOOM! Road Map is designed to be flexible. Whether your project takes two months or two years, it should progress along the same general path of sustainable community organizing. We have created an online form to help you generate an "ideal" project timeline or a personalized timeline based on a pre-determined build date.
Advance to Mile 2Are you the resident playspace expert in your community yet? If you can check off all the items on this Activity List, you're ready to cross the line into Mile 2: Conceive.