Co-Designing Outdoor Play Space: Child-Led Design

Though children use play spaces every day, they rarely have a say in how they're designed. Our project created a democratic process where these typically overlooked voices could directly shape their everyday environment. Through hands-on activities like photovoice (where children documented and explained things they liked or wanted to change about their current outdoor play space), collaborative site analysis, and design workshops, we uncovered insights adults would likely have missed, like the children's strong desire for "using shortcuts and secret passageways" as well as the high priority of some children to have quiet nooks where they could read or sketch away from the noise.

The project culminated with the 5th graders presenting their designs to school administrators and the project architects. These weren't just fanciful wish lists; the children thoughtfully balanced their experiential priorities with practical realities like budget constraints and feasibility. The process aimed to positively impact both the playground plans and the children themselves, who evolved from passive playground users into articulate design advocates with genuine influence over their environment. The impact to the child participants was assessed in post-program focus groups and teacher surveys indicating areas of potential skill development, such as team-based collaboration, as well as appreciation for having a voice in real-world decisions.