Welcome to our January Newsletter.

What an amazing start we are having to 2022. Our order books are full and we are very grateful to all our existing and new clients for helping us keep our design and installation teams fully employed.

We understand that a jungle gym can be seen as a ‘nice to have’, but those who invest in one for their children, school or community see benefits which far outweigh the financial outlay. There are many articles written about the physical and emotional benefits of outdoor play – we have included excerpts from many of them in our previous newsletters – see them here.

Below we highlight some of the stress relieving benefits of play which are increasingly important as we experience the fallout from the pandemic, and we remind you of the good habits which can be learned in the playground.

In our final article, we introduce Leentjie Malherbe from Dordrecht who worked with our design team to customise one of our timber designs for her children. Both mom and children are thrilled with the outcome. Read their story below
 

Happy Reading!

Play can relieve the stress effects of the pandemic

The covid-19 pandemic has brought with it unprecedented challenges and for many it has brought tragedy and loss. The fear and uncertainty associated with the changes in ‘normal’ life can manifest in loneliness, depression and distress among adults and children alike.

According to “Play” expert and founder of the International Play Equipment Manufacturers Association, Tom Norquist. “In addition to the obvious physical benefits, play has a natural healing power that’s unlike any medicine or drug. Intrinsically, play provides therapeutic benefits for children who are emotionally stressed. Studies have shown that when playing, children can release these emotions and “play out” the trauma, allowing them to share feelings freely.

Play allows them to express their emotions and feelings in ways that they may not be able to with words. The simple act of playing provides reassurance that they are safe and secure in what can all-too-often feel like a world of worry and uncertainty.”

Read the full article here

Playgrounds develop good habits which help children to become more well-rounded adults later in life.

Every community be it a home, school or residential area needs to raise children who are:

• courteous to others
• patient
• healthy

Outdoor playgrounds can be used to help teach them these skills from a very early age.

 Being courteous to others 
Obviously being polite needs to be taught, but a jungle gym can create an opportunity to reinforce the teaching and to practice the skill. Meeting another child in their path as they cross a set of monkey bars or arriving at a piece of equipment at the same time as another child, present opportunities for the children to learn how to put into practice what they have been taught and to navigate such challenges in a civil and polite manner. 

 The importance of being patient 

Being patient in a world almost entirely focused on instant gratification is a harder skill to acquire, but if it can be mastered, it will help prevent children from becoming rude and angry when they have to wait. 
On the playground, they will often have to wait their turn for the slide or to get onto the swing or to make their way across a balance beam. By exposing children to the frustration of having to wait early on in life, we are teaching them the skill of patience which will serve them well as they grow into adults.

 Living a healthy lifestyle 

Being active and eating healthily are the cornerstones of good health. If these can be instilled at early age, they will continue throughout a child’s lifetime.

By playing regularly on carefully designed playground equipment children will develop basic motor skills, will build upper and lower body muscles, and will improve balance, spatial awareness and hand-eye co-ordination.
 

Leentjie wanted a jungle gym that would build her 3-year-old son's strength and balancing skills. She described her requirements to Toni and together with the design team at Rustics,  they designed a jungle gym which incorporates, monkey bars and a ramp climber for strength and a 3 meter balance beam bridge.

She says, “I originally just wanted to order a slide and was going to build a jungle gym myself, but when I saw a friend’s Rustics Jungle Gym, I knew we weren’t going to match it for quality and safety.

"What an incredibly patient team of installers they are! My son was so excited, he kept trying to play on the jungle gym before it was finished – he also kept running up them to hug them to say thank you for building it for him. They took all this in their stride and were patient, friendly, fast and professional throughout.

I am very happy with the whole process from initial call to final handover and wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Rustics Jungle Gyms to my friends and family."

Leentjie, Dordrecht

Whatever your playground requirements, we can help

At Rustics Jungle Gyms we have been designing, manufacturing and installing wooden and metal jungle gyms since 2006. 

Our success is based on:

• safety - our outdoor play equipment is built to South African National Standard by-laws
• delivering a quality product at a fair price
• building equipment that will last - our quality and built-in resilience to the harsh South African environment give a longer life span
• honesty, integrity and our willingness to go the extra mile to give you what you want

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