That public playground is good for your kids and your wallet
If you live near a public playground it can be a convenient outdoor destination for short excursions and a life-saving source of pressure relief when the kids are too surly to bear inside the house....Read more
Watching TV ‘has strongest link’ with childhood obesity – study
Watching television is the lifestyle habit ‘most strongly associated’ with obesity in children, says an international health research centre which looked at city children’s habits. The Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal) did a study of...Read more
If in doubt, let them out – children have the right to play
New research from Statistics Canada’s Canadian Health Measures Survey reaffirmed the dramatic decline in Canadian children’s fitness seen over the past 35 years — with only one-third of Canadian school-aged children meeting physical activity guidelines. Other...Read more
Bulgarian city offers tax cuts to families of sporty children
Getting children active has never been more important – kudos then to a Bulgarian city which is proposing to cut the taxes of families whose children take part in organised sport. The local taxes and fees...Read more
New UK government ‘must reinstate urban playgrounds’
The next government of the United Kingdom must provide ‘urgent and sustained funding’ for public playgrounds to reverse an ‘alarming decline’ in the past few years. That’s the message from the Association of Play Industries (API),...Read more
Children ‘benefit from mixed-age play’
A generation ago, play was something most parents thought about. On a nice day, parents would send kids out into the neighbourhood in the morning, telling them to be back for dinner. That’s rare these...Read moreExhibition celebrates the history of playgrounds
The historical development of children’s urban playgrounds forms a central part of a fascinating new exhibition in London. Play Well is highlighting the work of – among others – Friedrich Fröbel, the German inventor of the...Read more
Children’s Commissioner’s concern over kids’ online gaming habits
The Children’s Commissioner for England wants tighter rules to protect children who game online and can spend hundreds of pounds on so-called ‘rewards’. Anna Longfield has published a report, Gaming the system’ , which looks at...Read more
Show kids how to play in a healthy Amsterdam
A new online book shows how ‘healthy play’ in Amsterdam can shape the futures of children growing up and playing in the city. Spelen In De Stad / Playing in the City is designed to show...Read more
Filmmaker documents youngsters’ city lives
The lives of toddlers in two contrasting cities on opposite sides of the world are chronicled in videos from the Bernard van Leer Foundation (BvLF), which works to improve disadvantaged children’s lives. Five short films highlight...Read more
So much more than just a skatepark
It’s the first ever skatepark built in Syria but, if you ask the kids, it might just be the most important skatepark in the world. After living through years of conflict, children in the Syrian city...Read more
Children who have afternoon breaks are fitter but need a supportive environment
Afternoon breaks were once a common feature of nearly all primary school timetables. But, as schools have sought to dedicate more time to teaching and learning, and limit poor behaviour, these short play times have...Read more
Providing Nairobi’s mothers with subsidised day care will benefit everyone
One of the major challenges that faces mothers who work is how to ensure their children are properly cared for while they are away. This is particularly true for women in low-income settings. For instance, in...Read more
Shared learning is aim of Bernard van Leer Foundation’s new early years studies
The Bernard van Leer Foundation (BvLF), which works to improve opportunities for disadvantaged children, has published the first in a series of case studies examining global early years initiatives. Three initial reports, which look at projects...Read more