Ready, Set, Play Outside!

It took a while, but finally it's here  -- perfect weather to visit area playgrounds.  Researchers have found that being outside is important for developing and keeping eyesight keen, so get ready for some outdoor time!

Parent Talk members can access a helpful list of local playgrounds on the PT website.  Parent Talk Matters Blog has also posted recommendations worth a revisit:   It's Playground Time! and Local Playgrounds for the Littles.  These are mainly for offerings in Dedham, Dover, Needham, Natick, Newton, and Wellesley.

I'm adding info for a couple of my favorites to the list of recommendations.  Two are local in Westwood, and one is a little off the beaten path.

Playing in Westwood's Tot Lot is fun when dressed for cooler weather, too!

AGE 3 AND UNDER

Westwood Tot Lot
This quiet, small playground on Nahatan Street is ideal for the littlest ones.  Swings are tot-sized buckets, and the slides on two climbing structures are a few feet above ground.  There are toys scattered about that usually include shovels, trucks, and ride-on cars.  The lot is well shaded for hot days.  One con is limited parking.  A handful of spaces can be accessed by driving through the adjacent Westwood Council on Aging parking lot (where no playground parking is allowed), to the back side of the playground.  But I have used parking in the front of the adjacent EW Thurston Middle School when it's not too busy at the school.

AGE 3 AND OLDER

School Street Playground
This Westwood playground is great for a wide age range, and could be ideal for family outings with kids who are not very close in age.  It includes a climbing wall and a tall, rope-web climbing structure for the older kids (that could be challenging even for adults!).  For tots, there is small climbing structure with a slide and tot-sized swings.  For a wide range of ages, there are spinning tulip cups, see saw, tire swing, elevated roundabout, and 15 foot tall slides, among other things.  The caveat is that almost the entire playground  is open to the sun.  Plan to visit a few hours before or after the hottest part of the day, to avoid arriving when the play structures are too hot.

This is the Dragon Boat at Alexander Kemp Playground.  "Figurehead" by Andrew Watson

Alexander Kemp Playground
If you have the chance to trek to Cambridge, the Alexander Kemp playground is well worth a visit for its unique offerings.  Highlights include a water pump with a series of descending trays, allowing for play with cascading water and pools.  It also has a roundabout and various types of pulleys and bucket apparatuses.  There is a real sandbox (not just wood chips, here!) of decent size, with a good mix of sun and shade.  A caveat is that water features are turned off when the weather gets cold, so be sure to visit before October rolls around.  Parking along the adjacent streets can be challenging and limited to residents, but is not impossible to find.

READY, SET, PLAY OUTSIDE!

Armed with all of these playground options, hopefully you can rest assured that you won't ever hear your kids complain about "visiting the same, old playground again!"


About the Author
Darlene W. Cancell is an attorney turned stay-at-home mom, and most recently, blog coordinator for Parent Talk.

Fun and Games at Parent Talk's Spring Sale

"Family games" by Matthew Hurst

With my twins' birthday coming up, I asked my Facebook friends to recommend board games that would make good gifts.  The wealth of ideas shared was incredible.  Not only did I end up getting some great gifts (Monopoly Junior and Sequence Letters), but I now have an extensive list to keep an eye out for while I shop at Parent Talk's Used Clothing, Toy, and Equipment Sale, coming up this Saturday, May 7th.

Because there are more than enough games to go around at Parent Talk's biannual Sale, I'm sharing my list with you, too!  Below are the best games, separated into categories of the Classics, Newer Names, and Special Focus games.  

There's a reason that games are listed below as Classics.  They are the ones that are tried and true, and great options for the gamers in your life.   

"Little girl playing a board game" by simpleinsomia

Take a look under Newer Names if you are looking for some more options that you might not have played with when you were a kid.  Lots of great games have popped onto the scene since we were young.  I can't wait to look for them at the Sale and bring them home to the kids.  The eeBoo company makes wonderful games for toddlers and preschoolers.  You really can't wrong with any of them.  We have a matching game and a set of story cards from eeBoo, and the kids still play with them at ages 5 and 9.  

Special Focus games are those that have special appeal to a given age group.  For example,  Peaceable Kingdom makes some wonderful cooperative games for the preschool set.

TODDLERS AND PRESCHOOLERS

At this age, my kids were happiest playing games that focused on pictures, color recognition and simple counting.  Busytown Eye Found It! is a favorite at our house. 

"game day at lunch at school" by Liz Henry

Classics

Candy Land

Chutes & Ladders

Cooties 

Don't Break the Ice

Don't Spill The Beans

Hungry Hungry Hippos

Newer Names

Think Fun's Roll & Play

Snail's Pace Race 

Sneaky, Snacky Squirrel!

Special Focus:  Cooperation

Busytown Eye Found It!

Race for the Treasure

Hoot Owl Hoot

Count Your Chickens 

PRE-KINDERGARTENERS

With new logic, math, problem solving, language and reading skills just around the corner, there are so many great board games to pick from for this age group.  There are also a number of card games that are great for this age, including Go Fish, Crazy Eights and Old Maid.  My kids have a set of these old favorites made by Melissa & Doug which has long been a crowd-pleaser.

"Sorry" by frankieleon

Classics

Monopoly Junior

Sorry!

Othello

Guess Who? 

Trouble 

Go Fish

Crazy Eights

Old Maid

Newer Names

Camp

Qwirkle

Blokus or Blokus Junior

Family Charades

Zingo!

Spot It!

Sequence

Spot It! is a compact card game that is easy to bring along to restaurants.  We also have Sequence Letters, and it's been great as the twins start to practice their letter recognition and pre-reading skills.

Special Focus: Logic and Problem Solving

Rush Hour

Camelot Jr.

Castle Logix 

Gobblet

KINDERGARTEN AND EARLY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL (FROM GRADES K THROUGH 2) 

Kids at this age are becoming readers, mastering their math skills and refining their fine motor skills.  This independence also means many more options for board and table games.   At this age, we discovered the GameWright company which makes a number of card based games that are just so fun.  Current favorites in our house include Sleeping Queens, Rat-a-Tat Cat and Chomp. 

"Queens" by Tedx NJLibraries

  
Classics

Jenga

Uno

Connect 4

Apples to Apples or Apples to Apples Junior

Newer Names

Pickles to Penguins

Skip-Bo

Very Silly Sentences

Suspend

Scavenger Hunt

Special Focus: Modified Versions of Games for Older Ages

Sleeping Queens

Rat-a-Tat Cat

Chomp

These games are often based on the card games we played growing up, which make them fun for both kids and adults.  While these games are geared for older kids, we have found that it's easy enough to make small modifications to the game so that the little kids can play, too.

(ALMOST) ALL AGES

Finally, I'm always on the hunt for games that can be played by my kids independently.  Now that they are aged 5, 5, and 9, there are a lot more options that fit this bill.  Our all-time favorites for independent play include Monopoly Junior and Hullabaloo.

"Alec - Mr. Money Bags" by aisletwentytwo

Monopoly Junior is a simplified version of the classic game, Monopoly.  It uses simple monetary denominations and all properties on a given side of the board are worth the same amount.  Our 9-year-old can easily explain the game and the younger ones picked it up after playing with guidance from us, along with their older brother.  Now, all three kids often choose to play it together. 

Cranium Hullabaloo is a take on another Hasbro game, Twister.  It comes with a talking console that calls out each of the "steps" in the game.  While the twins are the ones most likely to play this game on their own, their brother will often join in.  One of the twins, my daughter, will often play on her own, too.


About the Author
Wendy Todd lives in Needham with her husband, Aaron, and three kids aged 9, 5 and 5.  She previously served on the Parent Talk Board of Directors as both Playspace Chair and President.  She started volunteering for PT's biannual Sale in 2008 and has been a returning member on the Sale Committee for several years, now.  She plans to stay on the Sale Committee until her very last bargain is found!