Backyard Play Games You Can Make Yourself
Backyard Play Games You Can Make Yourself
Playing outside is fun, but many children get bored with traditional outdoor activities. To cut down on the boredom in your family, you are encouraged to think about purchasing or building your child an outdoor play structure. Outdoor play structures are different than most toys because they are larger in size and often come equipped with more than one activity. If you are interested in purchasing one of these popular play structures, you may want to take the time to familiarize yourself with what is available either online or from Target or Walmart.
When familiarizing yourself with popular outdoor play structures, you will find that you have a number of different options. Perhaps, the easiest way to go about seeing what is available is to visit your local retail stores. Many home improvement stores, toy stores, and department stores should have a fairly large selection of play structures available. In addition to seeing what is available locally, most storefront retail locations will have displays setup. These displays may give you an idea as to what your child’s new toy will look like in your backyard.
While it is nice to view the selection of local play structures, you may also want to examine a number of different online retailers. You may not get to see product displays, but you should be provided with detailed information, including pictures. What is nice about online shopping is that most online retailers have a larger product selection, when compared to most traditional retail stores.
Whether you shop online or at one of your local retail stores, it is likely that you will come across a number of different items that are referred to as play structures. As previously mentioned, most play structures are large in size and are often equipped with more than one activity. Popular play structures include, but should not limited to, swing sets, playhouses, sandboxes, and tree forts.
Sandboxes are often referred to as outdoor play structures because they are made of durable materials. Popular sandbox styles include ones that are made with plastic or wood. It is also important to note that sandboxes come in a wide variety of different sizes. This means that if you have a large yard or a small yard, you should be able to find a sandbox that is perfect for your child.
Tree forts are another popular backyard play structure. Unlike many other play structures, tree forts may be hard to find for sale. This is because a large number of them aren’t just big, but enormous. If you are able to find tree forts for sale, it is likely that only the supplies are for sale. It is rare to find a fully assembled tree fort in most, on and offline, retail stores. If your child would like to have a tree fort, but you are unable to find the supplies for sale or make one yourself, you may want to seek the assistance of a professional contractor.
Tree forts are many children’s dream toy; however, not every child can have one and they present safety issues. If you are unable to afford the cost of a tree house or if you do not have any trees in your backyard, you may want to think about purchasing a playhouse. In a way, playhouses are similar to tree forts. The only difference is that playhouses are ground structures. Playhouses, like most other outdoor structures, come in a wide variety of different styles. Many of these styles are great for boy, girls, or even both.
The above-mentioned play structures are ideal for small children; however, if you are looking for a structure that can be used for a long period of time, even as your child grows, you may want to look into swing sets. Swing sets often come equipped with swings, slides, teeter totters, and monkey bars. Metal swing sets are available for a reasonable price. For a more expensive and dependable structure, wood swing sets are also available. One of the neatest, newest, most popular back yard games or activities is known as Corn Hole. What this consists of is bean bags which are thrown onto a deck that is angled and has holes in it. Each hole can have a different score and/or just being able to get the bean bag into any hole scores as a point. Typically, there are two corn hole boards set opposed to each other at a distance that can be adjusted depending on the skill level and age of the participants. For teenagers and young people with a good arm and a good eye, 50-60 ft. may be appropriate, but for toddlers and young children 5-10 ft. might be the correct distance. After all, the object of the game is to get satisfaction from getting the bag to drop into the hole. In order to maintain this level of enthusiasm, the distance must be adjusted according to the needs of the participants. Corn hole games can be bought online or at retailers such as Walmart, Lowes, Home Depot, or Target. However, if you are handy and have some basic tools, they are relatively easy to build. It is simply a matter of constructing a frame and legs so that the frame is held at the appropriate angle. The only tough spot that needs a special tool is the hole. In order to make the correct 6” diameter hole the appropriate tool to use is a 150mm/ 6” diameter hole saw. These can be bought from numerous companies such as Klein, Stanley, Go Sports, Blue Boar, Hole Pro, Eliseo, Dewalt, and Tech Team https://techteamproducts.com/. We have found the Tech Team item 756 https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=tech+team+hole+saw to be absolutely perfect. It is available online from Amazon, has the perfect diameter, and the perfect number of teeth per inch to make smooth efficient cuts on the plywood deck. In addition, it has an arbor with a drill bit so that the hole can be perfectly centered, and then cut through by using a simple and easy to obtain 3/8” variable speed power drill.
In addition to tree forts, playhouses, swing sets, and sandboxes, there are also a number of other outside play structures that are available for sale. Whether you purchase one of the ones mentioned above, another, or make your own, your child will likely be pleased with the purchase. So pleased, that they may never want to play inside again.
