How playground spinners help develop kids’ senses

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OmniSpin® spinner

What are your kids’ favorite playground activities? Modern day merry-go-rounds and playground swings tend to attract droves of kids. So why are kids fascinated with swinging and spinning activities? Because it’s one of the core movements that engages the vestibular system. When a child spins on spinners like the OmniSpin® spinner or Saddle Spinners their brain receives signals to help control movement and balance. Even more, our playground spinners are not only fun, but they also deliver opportunities for social and cooperative play.

Children discover their world and how to be successful in it through sensory play. They develop their behaviors based on what they learn through their senses. And the more sensory-rich play experiences they have, the more they develop skills necessary to engage, change and impact the world around them. Learn more at playlsi.com, and tell us below what playground activity your kids like best.

PROJECT INCLUSIVE Playground open for play

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We’re excited to share that the Kiwanis Club of Ottawa, Ill., the 2015 winner of the Legacy of Play Contest, celebrated the grand opening of its PROJECT INCLUSIVE playground on Saturday, Oct. 15. The event brought together children and families of all abilities, and it’s just the first of many future play dates. PROJECT INCLUSIVE Playground features a ramped playstructure with various sensory-stimulating activities as well as freestanding play components like the Sway Fun® glider, OmniSpin® spinner, We-saw™, Roller Table™ and more.

Ottawa, Ill., is home to more than 18,500 people, and 13 percent of the community’s children live with a disability. Congratulations to the Kiwanis Club of Ottawa and everyone that was involved with this amazing inclusive playground project!

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Case Study: Creating lasting relationships with play and recreation

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Client: City of Jonesboro Parks & Recreation Department

Designers: Sheri Seminary, playground designer at Landscape Structures Inc.

Goal: Create a Miracle League recreation complex that could act as a showcase for all other Miracle Leagues

Solution: Their vision came to life as a 20-acre recreation complex complete with a rubberized ball field for children and adults with special needs, an inclusive playground, a concession stand, restrooms and a quiet room designed especially for children with autism. The inclusive playground focuses on access and offering sensory-stimulating activities including the Sensory Play Center®, OmniSpin® spinner, Roller Table, We-Saw™ and Sway Fun® glider. Even more, the playground integrates lots of shade right into the playstructure.

Read more about how the City of Jonesboro brought their community together through inclusive recreation at the Jonesboro Miracle League Park.

Celebrating Sensory Awareness Month

National Sensory Awareness Month | October 2015

October is National Sensory Awareness Month… a time for us to help spread awareness of sensory processing disorder (SPD). SPD, which affects both children and adults, is a condition that exists when sensory signals don’t get organized into appropriate responses. The causes of SPD are among the subjects that researchers at the SPD Foundation have been studying, and treatment often includes natural setting therapy like at home, school or the playground.

The benefits of sensory-stimulating playground activities—those that engage all their senses—affect children of all abilities. The more they engage all of their senses, the better they make sense of the world around them and their relationship to it. See our infographic below of five ways that children benefit from sensory play.

5 Key Benefits of Sensory Play | Landscape Structures Inc.