   
Five Reasons Your Child Needs a Backyard Swing Set
By Robin J.
Derry
Children benefit emotionally and physically when you
enhance your backyard with a swing set. To ensure your child never becomes bored of the swing set, look for sets
that provide a varied selection of activities. Children willingly go outside to play if there are appealing items.
A simple swing and slide rarely suffice. Children will be back inside behind their video game system and TV before
you know it.
Don't be afraid to customize a backyard swing set to meet
your growing child's needs. Many companies allow you to enhance their base sets with a variety of options and
equipment. You can create a set that meets your child's needs. Learn the five reasons why backyard swing sets
benefit a growing child.
1. Children who spend time climbing ropes and ladders develop
physical strength. Ask a child to get out and exercise and they respond with groans. However, if a child has a
backyard swing set loaded with activities, they will spend hours every day exercising without even knowing it.
Ropes, monkey bars and ladders improve upper body strength. Swings condition the leg muscles and abs. Rings and
trapezes help strengthen the back muscles.
2. Outdoor sets help a child develop coordination. Monkey bars excel at developing
coordination. Children must process the act of letting go of one bar while swinging and grabbing the next bar in
one fluid motion. Swings also help build coordination. Children must learn the proper timing for pumping their legs
and propelling themselves forward.
3. Growing children learn balance when they have features like a slide, teeter totter
and rope ladders. Because rope ladders shift easily, children must learn to shift their weight as a counterbalance.
Slides require balance while transitioning from the ladder to the top of the slide. Teeter totters require balance
and leg muscle as children push up while remaining on the narrow seat.
4. While playing on a backyard set or in a sandbox, children tap into their
imagination. The age old playground game of "Shark" requires a child to imagine the area under the swing set it
shark infested water and if they fall off the swing set, the shark will get them. This game requires imagination
and builds endurance. In a swing set fort or sandbox, children use their imagination to create scenarios like being
pirates or being construction workers using trucks to move sand for the castle they are building.
5. One of the hardest things children must learn is cooperation. Taking turns and
sharing are huge hurdles for a young child. When you add a slide to a backyard swing set, children must cooperate
and learn to take turns. It is imperative for a child to learn that slide safety requires one child to go down at a
time. This is a great feature to help children learn that sharing is fun.
Find out more about swing sets http://www.wise4living.com/kidfeature/swing.htm. Robin Derry has written articles about kids since 2000 - http://www.wise4living.com/kids/
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