In the latest issue of Children in Europe magazine, Fredrika Martensson from the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences at Alnarp writes that children who have access to outdoor areas with natural play structures such as trees, bushes or hills have more opportunities for open and flexible play which heightens their play mood and has physical and emotional benefits.
The natural characteristics of outdoor areas encourage activities and make it easier for children to join, withdraw from or change a play situation according to what they need, she says.
'Playgrounds are an important infrastructure for children in the outdoor landscape. If play structures are to make room for more than predictable gross motor activity, there needs to be greenery in the vicinity and more extensive surroundings for the children to elaborate on.'
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