PlayCore, a leading designer, manufacturer, and marketer of a broad range of play and recreation products along with its GameTime brand are excited to announce three additional playground openings following the Action Training Initiative with the California Park and Recreation Society (CPRS).
The Action Training initiative was developed in partnership with CPRS to provide statewide professional development services to assist parks through the CPRS Regions in creating playground spaces that incorporate best practice designs to encourage active behavior.
To begin the initiative, park representatives attended professional development sessions, earning Continuing Education Credits (CEU’s) and learning about the latest play research developed by PlayCore and its network of partners, scholars, and Universities. To apply, the representatives submitted creative essays demonstrating how their play project would contribute to health and wellness of the communities. Entrants were rated on a variety of criteria, and winners notified in late 2015.
The most recent park openings include Rynerson Park, in Lakewood, CA, Vintage Reserve Park, Murrieta, CA, and Cameron Park, West Covina, CA. Each site will serve as National Demonstration Sites for data collection to promote best practices to in adult & youth fitness as well as inclusive play. Rynerson Park received NDS designations in Fitness & PlayOn! Youth Fitness, while Vintage Reserve and Cameron Park gained recognition for both PlayOn! and their focus on creating an inclusive playground for people of all abilities.
PlayOn! demonstration sites promote physical activity and active play among youth. The PlayOn! Program is the result of a joint partnership between PlayCore and physical activity experts SHAPE America to provide a solution to enhance active play opportunities on the playground. Each park features a variety of six key play elements designed to promote physical activity: balancing, brachiating, swinging, climbing, sliding, and spinning. By utilizing PlayOn!, which includes 125 standards ‘based fitness activities designed for the playground, the sites can help children be more active, and learn to see fitness as fun. All three of the new play spaces achieved this milestone. In addition, Rynerson Park was also awarded NDS status for Adult Outdoor Fitness. Qualifications include providing a variety of elements to encourage the four elements of a well-rounded workout: cardio, muscle development, core development, and balance/flexibility. Aligned with PlayCore’s research-based best practice guide, Outdoor Adult Fitness Parks™: Best Practices for Promoting Community Health by Increasing Physical Activity, the site highlights the benefits of outdoor exercise. As stated in Outdoor Adult Fitness Parks™, “Exercising outdoors provides all the physical benefits of indoor exercise (blood flow, improved cardiovascular health, improved strength, flexibility, endurance, etc.) and can also provide important exposure to vitamin D, unlike indoor exercise.”
Finally, Cameron Park & Vintage Reserve Park were recognized for inclusive design and demonstrating excellence in addressing physical and social inclusion of people of all ages and abilities. Each playground features activities that address the following areas of development: cognitive, communicative, sensory, physical, and social/emotional.
All National Demonstration Sites receive certification, become part of a national registry, and are promoted actively to other communities wishing to create recreation spaces using validated best practices in design and/or programming.
To locate the newly opened sites, check out: www.pointsmap.com/playcore
To learn more about the CPRS Action Training Initiative, and to download the Action Training Initiative initial report, log on to http://www.playcore.com/cprs
About PlayCore: PlayCore helps build stronger communities around the world by advancing play through research, education, and partnerships. The company infuses this learning into its complete family of brands. PlayCore combines best in class planning and education programs with the most comprehensive array of recreation products available to create play solutions that match the unique needs of the each community they serve. Learn more at www.playcore.com
