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Nature Explore Residential Playscapes

Backyard Abundance is leading a national pilot study in partnership with Arbor Day Foundation, Dimensions Educational Research Foundation, and Abundant Playscapes to bring Nature Explore Classrooms to residential landscapes. Six residents in Iowa City, Coralville, and Ely were selected to participate in the study. The families represent a wide diversity of children’s ages, landscape sizes, neighborhood characteristics, and yard attributes.

The outcome of the year-long study will be educational workshops and materials targeting residential homeowners who want to increase the skills and wellness of their children and grandchildren.

Study Process

The study is composed to three phases that take place August 2011 through August 2012.

Phase I: Design
In August and September 2011, each family was interviewed by a landscape architect (Tony Malkusak), ecological designer (Fred Meyer), and educator (Mary Crooks) to understand their goals and vision for their playscape. Infrastructure and planting plans were created to meet the diverse desires of the family.

Phase II: Implementation
Implementation of the playscape infrastructure will take place in October and November 2011. Abundant Playscapes is providing material lists and coordinating the activities. Construction will be completed in fun-filled weekend sessions with the help of friends, family, and community members interested in supporting and learning about the effort.

The majority of the plantings will take place in March and April 2012. Backyard Abundance will provide plants lists and coordinate the planting sessions.

Phase III: Observation
Observation of the families and children takes place throughout the study and forms the foundation of the qualitative research.

At the beginning of the study, each family was asked a series of questions to assess their desires and level of understanding of these playscapes. They will be asked the same questions at the end of the study to gauge shifts in their vision and understanding.

Formal observations of children playing in the playscape will be documented by trained observers. The skills children are learning and their relationship with the space will be thoroughly documented. Positive and negative aspects of the designs will be recorded as input into the educational materials.

Meet the Families

The story of each family, along with pictures and their landscape design, can be found in the Backyard Chats blog: View the blog.

About Nature Explore

Nature Explore is an innovative collaboration between Arbor Day Foundation and Dimensions Educational Research Foundation to create dynamic, nature-based play and learning spaces where children of all ages thrive. Research-based and field-tested principles provide a foundation for the design of these beautiful environments.

Nature Explore playscapes are being built across the country in response to the growing disconnect between children and nature. They include interactive elements such as musical instruments made of natural materials, climbing structures, wooden blocks, small waterways, garden areas, and natural materials for building and creating art. These beautiful environments are typically created at schools and childcare centers. Backyard Abundance is helping bring them to residential landscapes.

Learn more about how these landscapes increase the skills and wellness of children:
Go to Children's Resources

Sponsors and Partners

Thank you to our sponsors and partners for contributing to the success of this project.