Kids are designing their own playgrounds in a contest which puts kids in charge of making the playground they want.  In Fort Lee, New Jersey, children’s ideas about what a great playground looks like will become a reality later this summer at schools 1 and 3.

Soft SkillsThe blacktop at each school will be transformed with $4,500 provided by the school board, and a winning plan that was selected by a panel of judges from among five entries.

“We try to make real-world options come to life,” said gifted and talented program teacher Elsa Osso. She had encouraged her fifth-graders to come up with a project that would benefit their schools.

Since January, students have been designing stencils to make the 480 square feet of blacktop at each school become a place of colorful games and activities that stimulate the body and mind.

“We were inspired by mathematics and patterns,” said Andy Zhao, designer of the winning entry with School 3 classmate Yejun Choi. “We kept in mind that the game had to be easy to learn, easy to play, and fun.”

Continue reading

Related article
Soft Skills