Is Your Neighborhood Playground A Safe Place For The Kids You Care About?

As grown-ups that care about the children, we would NEVER intentionally put a child in harm’s way, however, unintentional injuries do occur, and those requiring emergency room attention were at a cost of over $1.2 billion in 1995. (Office of Technology Assessment 1995). 1.

Children ages 5 to 9 have higher rates of emergency room visits for playground related injuries than any other age group. (Phelan 2001). So it is no coincidence that Slyde’s playground safety awareness program is designed for children in this age group. Kids can download Slyde’s coloring pages to print and color, or color online, with important playground safety messages.http://www.playgroundhound.com/kidzone/coloring

Grown-ups can more aware of the hidden dangers on playgrounds by educating themselves before a serious injury occurs. Visit http://www.pgpedia.com/h/hidden-dangers-playground for more information. 

In a New York City study, it was found that playgrounds in low-income areas had more maintenance-related hazards than playgrounds in high-income areas. One could interpret this to mean that children from a low-income neighborhood are more likely to sustain a playground related injury serious enough to require emergency room care than children from a higher-income neighborhood. (Suecoff 1999). Whether or not this is the case is not the purpose of this article. Teaching playground safety awareness, Slyde style. 

Regardless of your zip code, leaning what the potential dangers are and teaching children their role in playing safe is something every parent or caregiver can do and every child can learn. Sign up to become a Friend of Slyde and receive Slyde's quarterly newsletter, The Essential Slyde, packed full of information, activities and "free" downloads; everything kids can learn to give peace of mind at school or while playing in the backyard. Click here to subscribe. http://www.playgroundhound.com/signup-newsletter-page   

1. http://www.cdc.gov/HomeandRecreationalSafety/Playground-Injuries/playgroundinjuries-factsheet.htm