Playgrounds in Germany are way more imaginative and
daring than the (presumably) litigation plagued US opportunities for kids.
I often comment that my physical, embodied experiences on
German playgrounds growing up helped me through 60% of college intro Physics.
An American friend responded to my rants by pointing out that
US facilities used to be more adventurous as well, but that now
you see way fewer broken arms.
Not everything is bolted into immobilityWhere slides are still slides
You want something challenging?
Try this slide...(Dbl click to enlarge)
The slide way on the left drops pretty much straight down. You don't
see the end until you are almost ready to pop out.
No, I did not attempt this one. I already passed that Physics class.
But I talked to my (adult) daughter, who knows very little about Physics,
and was therefore happy to try the experience.
Now, granted, we did see one of these helicoperts land, and take away a slide client.
The guy had taken his foot off the sliding mat, getting it caught by
the side wall of the slide. It's called a torsion, or spiral fracture. But
then, who takes their foot off the slide mat on an adventure playgound???
Keep your feet on the slide matOk, one injury
Fun was had by a solid majority, though!
No Playground for Old Men—Or Is It? (
)
All caterpillars look clumsy; nobody suspects their soon to emerge winged beauty...
Of course, I was following my 4-year-old grandson through this gauntlet in response to his irresistable
insistance at the time.
When I showed him the above video some weeks after the trip he was puzzled: Apa, why did you crawl across this bridge?
It's comforting to know when you make a lasting impression through sacrifice.
Setup at the Schauinsland adventure playground: Up a ladder, across the bridge,
another bridge, into a tree house, down the slideTo start, we climb inside this shaft...
Hip guy traversing crevasseThe male gazeDimensions not hip-guy appropriate!
Physics in the Wild
Life lesson: the heavy guy wins, unless you go waaaaaay out on a limb.
Physics in the wild Torque=(mass×acceleration due to gravity)×distance from pivotBack to Germany 2025
