Children vary enormously in their physical, social-emotional and intellectual approaches. Differences in age, physical development, and experiences all matter. But while every child has different needs, there are some conclusions that can be drawn about what is useful to them in outdoor play settings. These concepts shape Rainbow's outdoor play equipment. This article looks at how out door play and garden play equipment fits into children's development in the three dimensions of physical, social-emotional and intellectual development.

In the first two years children continue their quest to move. They are free to move as much as their environment will allow and they progress from movement of their whole bodies to moving various parts of their bodies in different directions, but in concert with other body parts, simultaneously developing their gross and fine motor skills

It is critical at this stage that children are given opportunities to move and be encouraged to advance to the next stage of development. Some children are predominantly movement (kinaesthetic) learners, and a lack of opportunity to move at this stage is especially damaging to them.

Children begin to climb at this stage. They start tentatively, intently observing the next point of ascent. During this stage, a child holds onto a level with both hands, pulls up with one foot or knee, brings the second foot or knee up to the same level as the first, and if necessary, because the destination is not yet reached, repeats the efforts.

For this reason, Rainbow climbing bars are rounded so that small hands can grasp them, and bright yellow so that they can easily be observed. Ladders are angled so that if a foot slips off, it slips through the ladder, and is easily retrieved for a second attempt, without risk of falling off. 'Two and three year olds' have begun to walk and they need opportunities to walk on various types of surfaces in order to find ways to deal with their equilibrium and footing. The grass or play bark surrounding the play set and the deck itself provide opportunities for practice.

Surfaces should be predictable in nature for evenness, since a toddler will not always pick up his or her feet. For this reason, Rainbow decks have no protruding fixings. Toddlers extend their climbing capabilities. They need more demanding challenges; more rails and higher ladders, as well as surfaces to climb up and onto. They will start to climb in mixed patterns, sometimes bringing a foot up to the same level and sometimes placing one foot above the other. They will also begin to jump by jumping down with both feet or jumping off the floor with both feet. Later they will begin to jump for distance and height.

By the age of four to five, children are rapidly developing their fundamental movement actions. They need opportunities to walk, run, jump, hop, gallop, skip, slide, swing and leap. At this point, they also need opportunities to progress to mature climbers, climbing fluidly and consistently and alternating feet and hands to move upward to higher levels.

Rainbow play equipment provides a variety of climbing environments - rung ladders, rope ladders, chain ladders and rock walls - to help them advance. Six and seven-year-olds need vigorous activity to develop their coordination and strength. As they increase in height and weight, their coordination will continue to develop. From this age onward, as they gain height and weight, children need opportunities to improve their coordination.

Rainbow play sets have a multitude of options and additions that can help in this regard. For instance, monkey bars, trapeze bars and chin-up bars help them improve arm strength and coordination, and different swings, such as rope and disc, help them with body strength and gross motor skills. You can add options to your Rainbow play set as your children grow and develop. There are no significant general differences between the skills and abilities of boys and girls at this stage.

Socially, infants are dependent upon adults. In the first two years, the parent should be closely involved with the infant's experiences on the play equipment. It is important that the adults who are involved with them are as positive as possible regarding their exploratory behaviour since they are especially dependent on adult approval of their attempts to move and express themselves.

From ages two to three, children become more egocentric, but still need support of adults. They need adults to lend assistance, when needed, while allowing them to be independent. They generally also like to be near other children, but may be oblivious of what they are doing. So while it is good for them to mix with other children on and around the play set, there may be limited interaction. From ages four to five, parallel play and learning to share with others are developmental milestones. At this age it is important that they enjoy playtime with other children and that they receive encouragement to share and approval for doing it.

From ages six to seven children continue to increase their ability to engage in group play. Six- and seven-year-olds need opportunities to play with two to three others and with children of the opposite sex. A Rainbow play set gives a perfect environment in which this can happen, and provides challenges for different skill levels.

Infants are alert to their environment; they are busy watching, listening, and exploring. They are moving to find out how far they can reach. They are trying to get to an object they see. They are wondering what an object is and what it feels like and associating individuals with various textures, sounds, and smells. A play set can help them develop intellectually at this stage because it gives them an environment to explore.

As toddlers, children learn through their sensory impression and motor activities and the interactions of the two. For instance, coordinated movement cannot occur until the mechanism in the brain (corpus callosum) coordinating the two hemispheres is developed.When coordinated movement is occurring, both hemispheres and all four lobes are activated, so that cognitive function is increased and learning is easier.

Opportunities that challenge children to discover more about themselves and their environment also help them develop intellectually. You should therefore configure a play set for your children as if they were older already, giving them plenty of room to "grow into it". Four- and five-year-olds are eager to learn and generally lack fear. Therefore, although they are generally willing to take on greater challenges, it needs to happen in an environment where they cannot hurt themselves.

A Rainbow play set provides this environment. In addition to this lack of fear, five-year-olds are intellectually ready to make and understand rules. Primary children are able to differentiate between procedural rules related to game making and conduct rules that regulate socio-moral behaviour, and they incorporate both types into games. Rainbow play sets have a variety of possibilities such as playhouse panels, general store counters, picnic tables and sandboxes that encourage group imaginative play.

As children move on to ages six and seven, although their attention spans are still short, they have improving powers of memory, reasoning, imagination, purpose, and understanding of space, force and time. To foster a child's sense of purpose, they can be given difficult challenges to master, such as the monkey bar. Choices in how to use the equipment, such as various ways up and down it, can help foster their reasoning skills.

There are some things that all children need during their development that all Rainbow play sets provide, such as an environment for imaginative play and opportunities to climb. The right play set for your particular child is something that will be unique to them, and that you should decide in light of their skills, abilities, preferences and needs, as well as any constraints of budget and space.

Our sales consultants will be happy to help you translate these into the right set for you. In any event, you can be confident that we can help you provide the environment they need, and one that they can grow into as they develop.

Original material for this article from 'Matching Children and Play Equipment: A Developmental Approach' by Donna Thompson, Ph.D., Susan D. Hudson, Ph.D., and Mick G. Mack, Ph.D. of the United States National Program for Playground Safety