The National Program for Playground Safety (NPPS) was established in 1995 to address the growing concern of playground safety. Through its efforts to help America address playground safety issues, NPPS hopes to see a decline in the large number of annual playground-related injuries. It is estimated each year that every 2 ½ minutes, 205,860 preschool and elementary children receive emergency room care for playground-related injuries. Of that number, 76% occurred on public playgrounds.*

Did you know most playground injuries are associated with equipment? For children ages 0-4, climbers had 40% of the incidence rates, followed by slides with 33%. For children ages 5-14, climbing equipment had the highest incidence rate with 56%, followed by swings with 24%.*

HAI Group has been concerned about playground safety for many years and developed a Playground Poster and Essay Contest that gives children a chance to express themselves artistically and/or in written form with their views regarding playground safety. Coordinators from PHAs work with children to communicate the information surrounding the theme. This year’s theme is “Go Green, Keep Your Playground Clean.” Children developing the posters and essays around the theme have the opportunity to interact with adults creating an interactive learning environment. In this environment both children and adults learn and benefit from the experience. The contest will run in conjunction with National Playground Safety Week in April. This year’s contest runs the week of April 21.

Register Now

A flyer and registration form have been mailed to all HARRG and HAPI members. Participation in either the poster or essay contest, or both, may be elected. Details are sent out upon receipt of the registration form. The deadline for this year’s registration is April 4, 2008. PHAs are encouraged to run local contests the week of April 21 and send first, second, and third place posters and essays from three age groups to HAI Group for national judging, which takes place in May. Gift certificates for first ($100 Barnes & Noble or Wal-Mart giftcard), second ($40), and third place ($25) will be awarded. All winning posters and essays are then showcased in a calendar designed and published by HAI Group.

If you have not received the flyer and registration form, please click here to access the flyer.  For questions or comments regarding the contest, please call Debbie Bower at 800-873-0242, ext. 276. 

*Statistics were obtained from the NPPS Web site at www.uni.edu/playground.