{"id":122075,"date":"2025-07-16T11:05:15","date_gmt":"2025-07-16T09:05:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.buglo.pl\/three-key-takeaways-from-przemek-staron-on-how-children-learn-through-playgrounds\/"},"modified":"2025-09-26T07:40:04","modified_gmt":"2025-09-26T05:40:04","slug":"three-key-takeaways-from-przemek-staron-on-how-children-learn-through-playgrounds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.buglo.pl\/en\/blog\/child-development\/three-key-takeaways-from-przemek-staron-on-how-children-learn-through-playgrounds\/","title":{"rendered":"Three key takeaways from Przemek Staro\u0144 on how children learn through playgrounds"},"content":{"rendered":"

Przemek Staro\u0144 \u2014 psychologist, educator, and author of the bestselling School of Heroines and Heroes series, Teacher of the Year 2018, and finalist of the Global Teacher Prize 2020 \u2014 recently gave a lecture for Buglo as part of the Buglo Experts Circle initiative<\/a>. His perspective on playground and recreational space design opens up new ways of thinking, showing just how important the educational function of these places can be. Below, we share three key insights from the event that have particularly resonated with us. <\/strong><\/p>\n

Children don\u2019t listen. Children imitate <\/b><\/h3>\n

The most important learning mechanisms in children do not occur through words, but through action. Developmental psychology clearly tells us: we learn through modelling \u2014 by imitating the behaviours of adults. A child won\u2019t do what you tell them to do \u2014 they\u2019ll do what they see you doing. <\/span><\/p>\n

But that\u2019s not all. Imitation is also the first step toward role-play \u2014 a natural form of play through which a child experiments with different behaviour patterns, emotions, and identities. Through role-play, a child learns, practises social skills, and builds self-awareness and understanding of the world. <\/span><\/p>\n

The playground is a stage for relationships. The child watches the adult, the older child, the peer. If adults are active, show curiosity, and are genuinely engaged, the child absorbs it all. <\/span><\/p>\n

    \n
  • Make sure the space is legible and attractive for adults as well \u2014 a bench for observation is not enough.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Design equipment that encourages joint activity, e.g. ones that require parent\u2013child cooperation.<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Don\u2019t box play into instructions \u2014 the child will find their own way if we model an attitude of exploration.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    Play is the most serious form of learning<\/b><\/h3>\n

    Through play, a child activates all the key developmental processes: attention, intrinsic motivation, emotional regulation, flexible thinking, and creativity. Psychology shows us that during play, a child enters what\u2019s called the \u201czone of proximal development\u201d \u2014 a moment when they learn things they can\u2019t yet do alone, but can do with help or thanks to the environment. <\/span><\/p>\n

    Unlike school, which often relies on fear and assessment, the playground offers a safe space for exploration \u2014 free of consequences, yet rich in joy and engagement.<\/span><\/p>\n

      \n
    • Design spaces to be flexible and open \u2014 one piece of equipment can serve many functions<\/li>\n
    • Create areas with challenges \u2014 not everything has to be \u201ceasy and obvious.\u201d It\u2019s the hard things that stimulate development.<\/li>\n
    • Add surprising elements: unfinished forms, hidden passageways, \u201cpockets\u201d in space \u2014 these support curiosity and help children create their own narratives.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      From \u201cbe careful\u201d to \u201cbe brave\u201d<\/b><\/h3>\n

      The way we communicate with children \u2014 including through architecture \u2014 shapes how they see themselves. In a culture of excessive safety, we tell children the world is dangerous, that they must be careful, that \u201cyou might fall.\u201d But research shows that children who hear \u201cbe brave\u201d develop greater mental resilience and a sense of agency. <\/span><\/p>\n

      The playground can nurture children through challenge, not just through control. It\u2019s not about physical risk, but developmental challenge: jumping off, climbing up, making decisions <\/span><\/p>\n

      Children are at different stages \u2014 and playgrounds should be too. Not all children develop in the same way or at the same pace. That\u2019s why playgrounds should be diverse. Not just \u201cone size fits all\u201d equipment, but several different ones adapted to different ages and abilities. A toddler will choose something simple, an older child something more demanding. Every child will find something right for them, suited to their strength and courage.<\/p>\n

        \n
      • Instead of making things easier \u2014 offer choices. It\u2019s not about everything being 100% easy and safe. It\u2019s about giving the child a chance to decide what they\u2019re ready to try.<\/li>\n
      • That builds confidence and fosters independence. When they can choose, they learn to make decisions, assess risk, and test themselves \u2014 all of which are essential to healthy development.<\/li>\n
      • Children need challenges, but with a smart margin of risk. They grow when they do something slightly difficult or new \u2014 but not terrifying. That\u2019s why it\u2019s worth introducing so-called \u201ccontrolled risk\u201d: balancing bridges, low climbing walls, moving elements. These types of equipment allow children to overcome fear, practise bravery, and feel a sense of achievement.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

         <\/p>\n

        The insights from Przemek Staro\u0144\u2019s lecture are valuable for both those designing spaces and those spending time with children on playgrounds. They show how to support play wisely, how to foster development and build connection. Because the truth is \u2014 we learn best through play, and playgrounds and education go hand in hand. <\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

        Przemek Staro\u0144 \u2014 psychologist, educator, and author of the bestselling School of Heroines and Heroes series, Teacher of the Year 2018, and finalist of the Global Teacher Prize 2020 \u2014 recently gave a lecture for Buglo as part of the Buglo Experts Circle initiative. His perspective on playground and recreational space design opens up new […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":122074,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"content-type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[7106,7108],"tags":[7574,7790],"class_list":["post-122075","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-guide","category-child-development","tag-becpl-en","tag-articles"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.buglo.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122075","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.buglo.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.buglo.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.buglo.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/22"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.buglo.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=122075"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.buglo.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122075\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":122268,"href":"https:\/\/www.buglo.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122075\/revisions\/122268"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.buglo.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/122074"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.buglo.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=122075"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.buglo.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=122075"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.buglo.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=122075"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}