Susan Lindenmuth
Public Relations Manager
21500 Three Oaks Parkway
Estero, FL 33928
Office:
(239) 390-8046
Cell Phone:
(239) 691-4123
Email:
lindenmuth@esterofire.org
www.esterofire.org
Playground Safety
Each year 200,000 children are seen in US emergency rooms for playground
related injuries. Many of these injuries are due to falls on to hard surfaces.
National Playground Safety Week is a time to focus on children's outdoor play
environments. It is a time to pledge to use good judgment when playing and a
time for gratitude for all the adults who work tirelessly on maintaining our
playgrounds.
Here are a few tips from the National Program for Playground Safety.
What You Can Do
Playgrounds don't become safer all by themselves. They need people like you! So what can you do? Here are some suggestions:
-
Design and distribute surveys to discover favorite and least favorite equipment, as well as recurring playground problems and injuries.
- Talk with children
about the importance of playground safety.
- Create and hang posters
in schools and community areas outlining S.A.F.E. playground practices.
- Complete playground
equipment safety checks and evaluations.
- Challenge your school
to an injury-free week on the playground.
- Host a guest speaker to
discuss safety on the playground.
- Check out your local
playgrounds. If there is hard surfacing, such as asphalt, concrete, dirt, or
grass underneath play equipment, call the owner and politely voice your
concern. Ask if there is anything you can do to help.
- Write to the editor of
your hometown newspaper commenting on any playground safety issues in your
local community. Give credit to those facilities with safe playgrounds as
well.
- With children, make a maximum of five playground rules that they can remember and follow.
Playground Safety Week, at the end of April, is a reminder that a summer of fun begins with safety! For information on any of these topics, contact Susan Lindenmuth, Public Relations Manager at (239) 390-8046.