Toddler Educational Toys

Lovable toys for creative minds.

Toddler Backyard Playsets

Children’s outdoor playsets & Backyard play equipment

Toddler Backyard Playsets. Now your children can have a playground in their own yard!.This Backyard play equipment that will certianly keep your kids active.

Some of the backyard playsets in this review..

See All theToys we’ve reviewed

 

Obesity is an increasing health problem in the United States.The percentage of children and teens that are overweight has more than doubled in the past 30 years.

Being overweight also increases the health risks for kids especially type 2 diabetes. Children who are overweight have a greater chance of becoming overweight or obese as adults.

Besides watching our youngsters diet we have a responsibility to ensure they take enough physical exercise – to get our families active.

Here you’ll find some wonderful children’s outdoor playsets that will kids will really enjoy working out on. They’ll have fun and also get into the habit of exercising regularly on these toddler backyard playsets.

Playing in the fresh air and sunshine

There’s something about being outdoors that stimulates us to physical exercise. Whether it’s the effect of the fresh air and sunlight or our reaction to the open spaces, I don’t know. But take a toddler outdoors and they seem to immediately start to run, skip, climb and jump.

Having your own backyard playset for  toddlers provides all the outdoor play equipment they need to satisfy this urge to get active. There are places to climb, to swing,  to jump  and to slide.

The room available in your backyard allows for larger play equipment that you can fit indoors. The variety of the play equipment available in these play sets makes sure that every play time is new and exciting.

Under you eye

It’s very important to supervise young kids using outdoor play equipment. Although it’s great to take you children to parks and playgrounds it’s much more convenient if the playset is in your own yard. You are always available to look over your kids and they can go out and exercise whenever the mood takes them .

Play Idea

Walking over Niagara

This play idea came from when I was helping a friend to assemble his kids backyard playset. Whilst we were reading through the manufacturers instructions and checking that we had all the necessary parts, we had laid out the main timber uprights on my friends lawn.

My friend’s children were quick to take advantage of this new piece of “playground equipment” and had a great time walking along the wooden beams. They’d naturally learnt that, by holding their arms out in a T shape, they could improve their balance whilst progressing across the timber.

I’m a Cirque du Soleil groupie and have always been a big fan of circuses and circus artistes. I told the kids the story of Jean Francois Gravelet – alias Charles Blondin – the Frenchman who was the first to cross Niagara Falls on a tightrope.

I explained to the children how Blondin had used a “balancing pole” to assist him on his crossing. Of course, we had to have one too. A disused broom handle was a handy substitute.

We played “Follow my Leader” on our wooden tightrope. The followers having to repeat al the positions and gestures dictated by the leader. Lots of giggles.

When I told the kids that Blondin had carried his manager on his shoulders whilst crossing over the Falls we had to reenact this too. There were shouts and screaming laughter as my passengers and I tumbled the whole two inches down to the lawn.

My friend added a touch of realism to our pretend play by spraying us with the garden hose as we crossed the wooden tightrope. He said it was a reminder that he and I needed to complete the assembly of their backyard playset.

Using a just couple of pieces of timber to create a wooden tightrope for kids is a great way to provide toddlers with hours of fun. It’s a simple idea that helps improve balance. It’s also a portable outdoor toy.

PS. In the 19th century, tightrope walkers like Blondin were called “funambulists”. Not because of the funny costumes they wore but from the Latin for “rope walker”.

Playing together

These toddler backyard playsets are large enough for more then one child to play on. They offer great opportunites for young kids to interact socially. They learn from each other and are challenged  to imitate their peers. We know, as adults, that exercising together is much more fun than when on your own.

These backyard playsets just invite kids to engage in imaginative play. The size and shapes of these playgrounds lead young kids to easily pretend they’re on a ship, in a fortress or driving a huge truck. One day the princess will be singing on her glider swing. The next young Tarzan will be yodling as he slides down to earth. Watch as the stories unfold.

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toddler backyard playsets picture

Here are the Toddler Backyard Playsets we have reviewed…

How to choose Home Playground Equipment

What to look for

 and required features.

  • Safety is our prime concern when choosing toddler backyard playsets. Pick toys from reputable manufacturers. These will use appropriate materials and construction methods and  comply with national safety standards.
  • Backyard play equipment must be erected on a level surface or otherwise it can be unsafe.

Don’t forget the fall zone

  • Check how much room you will need to accomodate your children’s outdoor playset. Don’t forget that it’s not just the dimensions of the play equipment that determines the space required. You need to allow a “fall zone” around the playset. An area extending at least six feet all the way around the edge of the equipment is recommended.  A toy 10 feet wide and 8 feet deep needs an minimum area of 22 by 20 feet.
  • The surface of the area where you place your toddler backyard playset should be protective and shock resistant. Loose fill bark mulch, wood chips, fine sand or gravel are to be  preferred. Concrete and asphalt are “no no’s”. Weather and wear make grassed areas unacceptable.

Playground Equipment Safety checklist

 

Toddlers should use playground equipment only when supervised by an adult.

Teach your kids to avoid walking close to moving play equipment. Both in front of and behind! Warn youngsters about not swinging empty seats. Swing chains and ropes should not be twisted – it can weaken them.

Discourage children from alighting when swings etc.are still moving. Teach them to sit well balanced in the center of swings.

Ensure kids clothing (including footwear) is suitable. Scarves and loose fitting clothes may get caught in the equipment.

Prohibit climbing on these playsets if they are wet and slippery.

Inspect your playground equipment weekly looking for:

  • Corrosion or other deterioration of parts that connect to the ground.
  • Exposed footings.
  • Parts that are loose or worn, or that have protrusions.
  • Rust and chipped paint on metal.
  • Splinters, large cracks, and decayed wooden parts.
  • Missing or damaged items , such as handholds, guardrails and swing seats.
  • Nuts and bolts that require tightening.
  • Swings, chains, and slides with cracks or excessive wear.

Any defects should be remedied before allowing any further play on the equipment.

    • Your toddler backyard playset will need to endure a lot of wear and tear and so they need to be strong and durable.
  • A good kids outdoor playset should be designed to encourage a wide variety of physical activity and also different types of play. The sets we have reviewed include a wide range of backyard play equipment. We have chosen toys that really stimulate imaginative play by offering exciting play areas and features that will appeal to a toddler’s adventurous curiousity.

Look to the future..

    • Toddler backyard playsets are not inexpensive. So look for toys that will appeal to your child for many years to come. This way your child’s backyard playset will prove to be a  long lasting investment.
    • Ensure your outdoor playground is made of materials that are weather resistant. Wooden backyard playsets for toddlers need to be constructed from pressure treated timber and should be given a coating of weather protectant each year.

Get off that couch!

When I was in Australia recently, I saw a very amusing TV ad aimed at encouraging kids to get off the couch and exercise more.

I have always thought of Australia as a nation of great atheletes and outstanding sportsmen and women. Australia always seems to come away with a disproportionate share of Olympic gold medals, considering their 20 million population.

The nation is famous for its swimmers and dominates the sports of rugby and cricket. It’s soccer team qualified for the 2006 soccer World Cup finals.

The Australian climate could not be better for encouraging outdoor pursuits. There are wonderful beaches and the space and facilities for almost any sport you can think of.

I was really surprised therefore, to learn that Australia has the second highest rate of child obesity in the world  – second only to the United States. Almost one quarter of Australian teenagers are overweight or obese

The Australian government has spent 6 million dollars on the campaign which is aimed at encouraging kids to take at least one hour’s physical exercise each day. They obviously consider child obesity to be a serious problem.

The ads feature an “active” couch. In one scene the couch throws it’s young occupant off into a swimming pool. In another the couch takes the kids – who were just sitting watching TV – outside and plays basketball and hand tennis with them.

A couch like this one would make a wonderful toy for a toddler. Just being thrown about would give them so much fun. Until it comes on the market a toddlers backyard playset  offers a great way to encourage young kids to “get off the couch”.

  • We believe the choice between wood or plastic back yard playsets is very much a personal one. Personally, I think toddler’s wooden play sets are more attractive and offer a wider variety play experiences.
    • Plastic back yard playsets are appealingly brightly colored and offer the advantages of being easy to clean (always important for toys used by toddlers) and of not having splinters or rough surfaces.

Build it and they will come  – and play!

Assembling toddler back yard playsets can be quite a challenge.  All of this equipment must be properly assembled according to the manufacturer’s instructions if it is to be safe.

Don’t panic!  Marshall your team of assemblers –  Granddads are usually experienced and especially useful  as a source of advice and tools. Read through the assembly instructions, identify the components and check you have them all – before you start. Acquire all the tools that you will need (call Granddad).

Don’t be stressed and allow plenty of time to erect your backyard playset. If possible, arrange for your toddler to be elsewhere during the construction. Assembling equipment that is already being played on, with tools that have “walked”, whilst answering questions on completion deadlines can be very stressful. Call Grandma.

Be assured that seeing the joy and excitement your new backyard playset brings to your youngster will easily outweigh any frustrations you have  in its assembly.

Is there an alternative to Toddler Backyard Playsets?

You’ll find some interesting alternatives to toddler backyard playsets in our review of Indoor Climbing Toddler toys or you may return to the Outside Toys section.

See All the Toddler Backyard Playsets we’ve reviewed