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What are some different types of playground equipment?

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Modern playground equipment comes in a vast array of sizes, shapes, and colors, is made from many different materials, and has a multitude of thrills for children. With so many choices, it's tough to know where to start! Basically, most commercial playground equipment can be divided into five categories: sliding, spinning, balancing, hanging, and climbing. Home playground equipment usually adds swinging to these categories.

• Sliding - Today's slides can be covered or open, bumpy or smooth, curving or straight, with or without a jump at the end, and made of steel or plastic. They range from four feet to twelve feet high. Slides can stand alone, having their own ladder, or they can be attached to a larger piece of equipment.
• Spinning - Many playgrounds have done away with the old carousels, which were large discs where children sat and held onto handles while they spun. A new spinning toy has replaced these. This toy has an individual standing platform attached to a straight pole with a curve at the top. Children stand on the base and start themselves spinning, achieving speed as they pull their centers of gravity inward.
• Balancing - There are numerous pieces of equipment today that promote good balance, including balance beams, log rolls, stepping stones, and rope bridges. These toys are good ground-level activities.
• Hanging - Monkey bars, jungle gyms, rolling bars, hanging trapezes, and other objects with strange shapes and twists are all used for hanging activities.
• Climbing - Climbing is a newer activity to the playground world. The three main configurations of playground climbing apparatus are as follows:

--large, flat planes with bubbles that can be held onto while climbing, like a climbing wall
--cargo net configurations
--bar lattices that resemble monkey bars

Another component that is being added to more and more playgrounds is the activity panel. These panels can include alphabet boards, large mirrors, and spinning blocks with images and words on them.

Next Page: How can I create a playground in my own back yard?

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