Outdoor Playgrounds from Children's Perspective: Insights from a Participatory Design Workshop

Abstract

ABSTRACT In today's cities, the decreasing opportunities for children to play outdoors and the limited contributions of traditional playgrounds negatively affect their development. This situation highlights the importance of designing play areas that can offer experiences suited to children's needs. This study aims to identify children's expectations regarding play spaces and contribute to the design process accordingly. As part of the research, a workshop was conducted with the participation of 11 children aged between 5 and 11. Within the participatory design process, children were given the opportunity to reflect on traditional and open-ended play environments, and to design their own play areas through drawing and model-making activities. Based on the children's comments and their explanations of the drawings and models they created, four main themes regarding their expectations and suggestions for play spaces were identified. The findings show that children are capable of critiquing traditional playgrounds, prefer open-ended play opportunities, can generate creative ideas for such play, and can propose suggestions that provide diverse experiences with playground equipment. It was also observed that the children showed a high level of interest and motivation toward the subject and the design process. In this context, the study indicates that children need play experiences that go beyond traditional playgrounds, and that solutions addressing these needs can be developed through participatory design processes. Keywords: Open-Ended Play, Children's Participation, Outdoor Play, Playground Design

Keywords

• open-ended play
• children's participation
• outdoor play
• playground design

Çocukların Bakış Açısıyla Dış Mekân Oyun Alanları: Katılımcı Tasarım Atölyesinden Çıkarılan İçgörüler

Abstract

ÖZ Günümüzde kentlerde çocukların dış mekânda oyun oynama olanaklarının azalması ve geleneksel oyun alanlarının sınırlı katkıları gelişimlerini olumsuz etkilemektedir. Bu durum, çocukların gereksinimlerine uygun deneyimler sunabilen oyun alanlarının tasarımını önemli hâle getirmektedir. Çalışmada, çocukların oyun alanlarına ilişkin beklentilerini ortaya koyarak tasarım süreçlerine katkı sağlayan bir değerlendirme sunulması amaçlanmış, 5-11 yaş aralığında 11 çocuğun katılımıyla bir tasarım atölyesi gerçekleştirilmiştir. Atölye sürecinde çocuklara geleneksel ve açık uçlu oyun alanları üzerine düşünme, çizim ve maket yapımı yoluyla kendi oyun alanlarını tasarlama olanağı verilmiştir. Çocukların yorumları, çizimleri ve maketleri hakkındaki anlatımlarına dayalı olarak elde edilen veriler doğrultusunda, oyun alanlarına ilişkin beklenti ve önerilerini yansıtan dört tema belirlenmiştir. Bulgular, çocukların geleneksel oyun alanlarını eleştirebildiklerini, açık uçlu oyun olanaklarını tercih edebildiklerini, açık uçlu oyun için yaratıcı fikirler geliştirebildiklerini ve oyun ekipmanları için deneyim çeşitliliği sağlayacak öneriler sunabildiklerini göstermektedir. Katılımcı tasarım sürecinde çocukların konuya ve tasarıma olan ilgilerinin, motivasyonlarının yüksek olduğu gözlemlenmiştir. Bu bağlamda çalışma, çocukların geleneksel oyun alanlarının ötesinde deneyimlere gereksinim duyduğuna ve bu gereksinime cevap verebilecek çözümlerin katılımcı tasarım süreçlerinden yararlanılarak geliştirilebileceğine işaret etmektedir. Anahtar Kelimeler: Açık Uçlu Oyun, Çocukların Katılımı, Dış Mekânda Oyun, Oyun Alanı Tasarımı

Keywords

• açık uçlu oyun
• çocukların katılımı
• dış mekanda oyun
• oyun alanı tasarımı

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