Community Service Learning - Nature Play in Cleland Wildlife Park - Report Example

Community Service Learning Nature play in Cleland Wildlife Park Name: Table of Contents Table of Contents 2 Introduction 3 Cleland 4 Nature play: social and economic context 6 Advantages of nature play 7 Aims of the project 7 The site 8 Materials 8 Tree logs and timber 9 Sand 9 Moss rocks 10 Wood chips 10 Pebbles and stones 11 Discussion 12 Design and consultation 12 Sand play area 12 Adventure play 13 Climbing structure 13 Log slide 13 Safety 14 Ability to meet aims and objectives 15 Recommendations and work for future Community Service Learning Project students. 15 Conclusion 17 References 18 List of figures Fig.1, Cleland master plan Fig.2, map of Cleland entrance Fig.3, Tree logs at the park Fig.4, Moss rocks Fig.5, Wood chips at the play area Fig.6, Pebbles and stones Fig.7, Sand Fig.8, Sand at the play area Fig.9, Design of a log slide Introduction This report is based on Cleland Wildlife Park (CWP) and is collaboration between the University and CWP. The report looks at ways in which the experience at CWP can be enhanced. CWP have been advocating for nature play and have been looking into ways in which the concept can be utilised to enhance the experience at the park especially for the children. The main aim is to help the visitors connect with the nature in a safe and structured manner. Cleland is situated in a 35 hectares land in the Adelaide Hills. Cleland Fig.1, Cleland master plan Fig.2, Map of Cleland entrance The park is situated within the Adelaide Conservation Park which is 20 minutes’ drive from Adelaide City centre. Cleland has over 130 species of fauna some which are unique in the area. The park has made some of the fauna free range, which enables the visitors to interact with them. The park is under the Department of Environment, Water and natural Resources. Since 1967, the park has been a major tourist attraction and is adjacent to the Mount Lofty Summit. The park has an open bush land that is inhabited by wildlife. One of the park interesting aspects is the open space where there is little animal enclosure. Visitors are allowed to pat and feed animals as they walk amongst them. Nature play: social and economic context The project involved meeting the representative of the Natural Play South Australia. The meeting main aim was to enhance our knowledge on nature play and she was able to help us a lot with the background knowledge needed. The meeting helped in compiling the information below. Through playground, socialisation, physical activity and imaginative play become possible. Playground has been availed in different areas and locations in Australia. Despite their accessibility, they have not been able to meet their main aim. A nature playground utilises mainly natural materials for playing. Through nature play, the children are exposed to nature in a fun way (Fjørtoft, 2004). This helps to cater for the lack of outdoor play in new generations. Play is connected to the child learning and development. Play has been described as a leading factor in child development (Hughes, 2009). When carried out in nature play becomes more exciting as the children engage with nature. Children growth is shaped by the social and physical environment. Apart from brain development, play helps the child to develop capability to solve real life problems. Play is a form of cognitive learning (Zigler, Singer & Bishop-Josef, 2004). Research claims that outdoor playing is very valuable to children. The diversity that is offered by the natural environment acts as a great catalyst for child play. Economically, nature play is an economic activity in parks. When well implemented, the parks can attract large number of family visitors. This is a major source of revenue for the park. Research has proved that children spend most of their time playing indoors than outdoors. The studies show that children spend less than 2 hours playing outdoors. This has been contributed by modern technology which has led to video games. With the rise of urbanisation, children have become less participative in outdoor playing activities. Children have become less encouraged to participate in outdoor playing activities. According to her, the following factors have led to the reduction in playing outdoors. Modern technology has made it possible for the children to spend a lot of time indoors with video games, social media and smartphones among other technologies. Urbanisation: with urban development, a lot of space has been taken by structures. This has decreased the playing space. Children control: Parents have become stricter on children play time reducing time for outdoor play. Conventional play grounds: the creation of conventional outdoor play grounds which are highly controlled and synthetic. Advantages of nature play Natural playgrounds are fun compared to conventional playground. This makes them less boring and challenging than synthetic playgrounds. Children playing in the natural playgrounds get sick less often as they get immune. Natural playgrounds enhance creativity and imagination of the children. Children ability to deal with challenging tasks is enhanced Natural playgrounds are cheaper than the conventional playgrounds The chances of the children becoming overweight are reduced. Aims of the project To come up with a nature playground at Cleveland To boost the number of the families visiting the park. Promoting outdoor playing To increase awareness of outdoor playing Enhance sustainability The site The site of the playground is located in an area with trees and grass. The area is near a cafeteria where the visitors can enjoy meal in a relaxing environment. The parents and guardians can offer supervision to their children while relaxing at the cafeteria. The area has been chosen due to fact that it has all the requirements for a natural playground. The playground will be designed in the area with minimal disturbance to the environment (Heck, Collins & Peterson, 2001). Materials The following materials will be used for nature play in Cleland. Materials are the most important aspect of the natural playground (Hendricks, 2011). The materials used in a natural playground must be, natural, recyclable and sustainable. The first step involved looking at the available at Cleland. The part has a lot of materials which are natural. Through the guidance of Cleland officials, we compiled a list of the materials that could be used for the project. The next step involved looking for the suppliers and getting the costs of materials that were not available in the park. Through appropriate consultations, we were able to come up with a list of appropriate and adequate materials. Tree logs and timber Fig.3, Tree logs at the park This is the main materials that are to be used in the playground. Logs and timber are available in the park and are cut in an environmental sustainable manner. This ensures that the environment is maintained (Fjørtoft, 2004). The logs provide timber which is a vital component for the structures. Due to their strength, they are capable of holding large loads with minimal maintenance. The uses of tree logs are; stepping stone, Children Bridge, sand enclosure and structural components. Sand The sand to be used is designed for natural play. The sand is soft which makes it possible to reduce fall injuries and provides a ground base. The sand is cheap and was obtained from the local suppliers. The cost of sand was $30 per ton. Sand was used at: play area, soft base and digging area. Moss rocks The rocks are naturally available at the park. There are also local suppliers who can be used to cater for a shortage. The rocks are cheap and are of different sizes and shapes. Buying in bulk reduces their costs from the local suppliers. The rocks were to be used for giving the environment a natural look, building the bridge base for tree logs and constructing climbing structures. Fig.4, Moss rocks Wood chips Fig.5 Wood chips at the play area Wood chips are obtained from chipped trees. The small sized wood chips are very vital in constructing a soft ground cover. Due to their non-toxic and non-abrasive nature, they have been selected for the playground. The wood chips will be used for ground surface, making ground soft and eliminating injuries. Pebbles and stones The river pebbles are found in different shapes and sizes. These are relatively cheap and are available from the local suppliers. Fig.6, Pebbles and stones Discussion Design and consultation After ensuring that all materials for construction were available, we had to consult an architect. The architect was a specialist in this field and helped a lot in coming up with the design. After the discussion with the architect, we came up with the suggestions that were presented to the Cleland. Sand play area The sand play area can be installed using tree logs and sand. The logs are used for surrounding the play area. Based on the advice from the architect, the tree logs height is expected to be less than 600mm which is the standard for playgrounds in Australia. The Play area inside is expected to be filled with soft sand where children can play. The sand will provide a soft landing ground preventing injuries while logs provide a stepping stone. Fig.7, Sand Fig.8, Sand at play area Adventure play This is a challenge game with some risks for the children. The children playing this game will benefit a lot from the physical activities involved. Climbing structure This is another play that we suggest for Cleland to construct. The play use mass rocks as a foundation to come up with a rock climbing structure. Wood chips are added at the ground to avoid risk of injuries and provide a soft landing. Log slide Children love slides making it one of the most popular games at the nature play. The selected site is sloppy making it ideal for slides. The slide will be made out of wood log to ensure that the site is as natural as possible. The wood chips will be put at the end of the slide to reduce the risk of injuries. Fig.9 design of log slide Safety While designing the natural playground, care has been taken to ensure that it complies with the Australian playground standards (Valentine & McKendrck, 1997). The structures have a free height of fall which is less than 600mm. the ground is covered with soft materials to ensure that the risk of fall is minimised. There are foot and leg apartment in the stepping stone game. The design is made under use of probe test to ensure that all safety requirements are met. Head and neck entrapments have been taken into consideration during the design. The design has ensured that the net openings are 130-230mm square. Ability to meet aims and objectives The project has been able to meet the aims set. This is through coming up with a nature play at Cleland Nature Park. The Park has a capability to increase the number of the families visiting Cleland. This is a great move that will increase the amount of revenue that is collected. The nature play park is a great way to spend family time and ensure that children get adequate outdoor play time (Fjørtoft & Sageie, 2000). The park is expected to be a major boost to the visitors and will help to increase awareness on nature play. The costs of coming up with the nature play ground is minimal compared to the benefit that will be brought to the community and park. Nature play connects young people with the local environment and enhances the use of all senses. Nature play will also provide the children with natural objects which they can play with such as leaves and barks making them more creative (Pellegrini & Smith, 1998). Recommendations and work for future Community Service Learning Project students. Cleland is supposed to ensure that the natural playground has been incorporated. This is expected to be accomplished based on the materials and design provided. The design ideas are well drafted with the help of experts making them feasible for use (Heck, Collins & Peterson, 2001). Cleland Park is expected to continue working on natural playground ideas and expand on them. It’s recommendable for Cleland to continue partnering with students in order to come up with a successful nature play. After designing the project, good maintenance is required (Davis, White & Knight, 2009). This will ensure that there is sustainability of the play spaces. The costs to be incurred for maintenance and the plans required are expected to be analysed at the commencing of the project. This will include making sure that there are plans for litter picking, replacing broken equipment and maintaining features. It’s recommendable for the project to be carried out with collaboration of the maintenance team and specialists such as ecologists. Dialogue between all those involved should be maintained and sustained throughout the design lifecycle. This is due to fact that wear and tear is a common occurrence in a park where children plays. Where possible contracting services should be involved for maintenance (Davis, White & Knight, 2009). This will ensure that the park designed is safe and standards are maintained throughout. Cost benefit analysis should always be taken when carrying out major decisions in the park. Risk benefit analysis will also be used in determining the viability of certain games involving risks (Nature Play WA, 2015). It’s recommendable for the future students to take part in the design of other nature playground ideas. There is also great need for the students studying disciplines related to architecture and environment to take part in building of nature playgrounds. This will make the project more advanced and come up with new designs. Despite the fact that there are initial costs to be incurred, the final project outcome has great benefits for Cleland and society. The design of nature parks should be extended to make it a mega project. This will ensure that it can cater for large group of children and give them a great opportunity to play outdoors. Conclusion The project has been a great avenue for the team to gain more knowledge on nature play. Despite being challenging, it was a great opportunity to contribute to the society and ensure that children are able to enjoy from nature. The team had a chance to visit several parks while carrying out the project which increased their knowledge and awareness on environmental issues. The visit was a major contributor to our knowledge on nature playgrounds. The current generation of children spends most of their time indoors as compared to the previous generations. This denies them a great opportunity to play and enhance their creativity through outdoor play. Cleland have a great opportunity to provide children with this project at minimal costs and little disturbance to the environment. The project will be able to encourage children to participate in outdoor games. The project helped the team to sharpen their skills in communication and working together as a team. This is through the multidisciplinary approach that was required in undertaking the project. Members learnt more on how to manage their time. This is due to the tight schedule that was required in meetings and planning for the project. The multidisciplinary approach helped the team to become more informed in other areas such as architecture and environment. The team also became more aware on the environmental issues. By designing the project, it will be possible for Cleland to increase their number of family visitors, revenue, create awareness and enhance sustainability. References Davis, L., White, A., & Knight, J. 2009. Nature play: Maintenance guide. NCB. Fjørtoft, I. 2004. Landscape as playscape: The effects of natural environments on children's play and motor development. Children Youth and Environments, Vol.14, no.2, p.21-44. Fjørtoft, I., & Sageie, J. 2000. The natural environment as a playground for children: Landscape description and analyses of a natural playscape. Landscape and urban planning, Vol.48, no.1, p.83-97. Heck, A., Collins, J., & Peterson, L. 2001. “Decreasing children's risk taking on the playground.” Journal of applied behavior analysis, Vol.34, no.3, p.349-352. Hendricks, B. E. 2011. Designing for play. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. Hughes, F. P. (Ed.). 2009. Children, play, and development. Sage. Nature Play WA, 2015, Natureplay.org, Retrieved 29th may 2015 from, http://www.natureplaywa.org.au/programs/nature-playgrounds/benefits Pellegrini, A. D., & Smith, P. K. 1998. “Physical activity play: The nature and function of a neglected aspect of play.” Child development, Vol.69, no.3, p.577-598. Valentine, G., & McKendrck, J. 1997. “Children's outdoor play: exploring parental concerns about children's safety and the changing nature of childhood.” Geoforum, Vol.28, no.2, p.219-235. Zigler, E. F., Singer, D. G., & Bishop-Josef, S. J. 2004. Children's play: The roots of reading. ZERO TO THREE/National Center for Infants, Toddlers and Families. Read More