The Adventure Playground movement was started when a Danish landscape architect, Sorensen, noticed that children preferred to play everywhere but in the playgrounds that he built.  In 1931, he imagined "A junk playground in which children could create and shape, dream and imagine a reality."  The first adventure playground opened in Emdrup, Denmark in 1943, during World War II.  In 1946, Lady Allen of Hurtwood visited Emdrup from England and was impressed with "junk playgrounds."  She brought the idea to London where these "junk playgrounds" later became known as "adventure playgrounds."  Adventure playgrounds spread throughout Europe, particularly to Scandinavian countries, Switzerland, the Netherlands, France and Germany. In Switzerland, the first two playgrounds opened in 1955, and in Germany in 1967.

Currently, about 1,000 adventure playgrounds exist in Europe, largely in Denmark, Switzerland, France, Germany, The Netherlands, and in England. In Germany alone there are some 400 adventure playgrounds. Japan has a significant number of adventure playgrounds as well.

In the U.S. there are currently two adventure playgrounds - one in Berkeley, California and one in Huntington Beach, California (which only operates in the summer).  Why only two?  Because the liability laws in Europe are different for Adventure playgrounds than they are for other public places, giving them the freedom to offer a wide range of fun learning opportunities to children.  In the United States, liability claims have made this type of playground more challenging to run.  Not because they are that much more dangerous than regular public parks.  In fact, studies show that because the danger is acknowledged and more obvious both parents and children pay more attention and are actually less likely to get hurt.  But, over the years we have gone overboard as a society to make sure that our kids don’t get hurt.  Rubber surfaces in our playgrounds.  Splinter-proof  boards.  Some schools have even removed the play equipment from their grounds.  Kids are let out onto big open fields for recess.  Come on! 

Last year, Berkeley had 2 injuries reported.  Most of the injuries are akin to smashed thumbs and skinned knees.  That’s a small price to pay for the lessons learned in this type of environment.  The kids have to work together because it is often physically impossible for them to do what they want to do by themselves.  They aren’t strong enough to hold the boards up and hold the nail and swing the hammer all at the same time.  They have to negotiate to settle on a plan that everyone wants to work on.  And finally, they take pride in the finished product – it’s theirs, they built it on their own.  They get a great sense of accomplishment from playing at an Adventure Playground, one that can’t really be mimicked in a traditional playground. 

I REALLY want to open one of these in Memphis.  I mean REALLY!  I’ve done some research.  I need land and building materials (I could get them donated from construction company’s trash piles.)  Think about it…this is a very green business.  Recycling construction waste for the sake of our children.  Love that.  Maybe it could work as a non-profit, because it wouldn’t make a lot of money, but it would be so great for the kids and the community (in my opinion).  So, anyone in Arlington, TN with land that isn’t being used…want to play?