Kids' Places to Play

Places to play is what a grandparent wants. Ideas are great and easy to understand.

This is a very comprehensive book on children's play structures that begins with lists of what children like to play with by age, what they can do to help build by age (nails, screws, shoveling gravel) and how to involve them in the design. There are water features, sand areas, play houses (from forts to teepees to castles), tree houses, cable rides, bike "roller coaster," climbing walls, skateboard ramp, and other fun things. There are amazing details like a periscope on a tree house, window boxes, steering wheels and a telephone of rubber tubing and funnels. Don't think you need a huge lot either, as these projects scale well and there is even a tiny yard shown with a water feature, a stage for plays, a circular bike path, and a sand box beside a grassy garden area. If you build these, they will come.

Book is very informative and give several plans. Also explains how to make your own cargo net (if you can find the materials) and a really cool spider-web climbing net