Four Temporary Waterslide Designs Adapted to Different Slope Conditions to Encourage Child Socialization in Playgrounds

Abstract

Increased urbanization has decreased children's access to various natural outdoor environments. To counteract this deficiency in early life experiences, we designed four temporary waterslides, each tailored to different city-side park conditions. The waterslides were simple to construct, with frames built from easy-to-attain resources such as bamboo rods from a local forest and simple pipes and joints overlaid by a tarp. Plywood boards, cardboard, and a tarp were used to create a pool at the foot of the slides, which were placed on existing slopes or stairs in each park. Water was continually released down the slide during each 1-2 h event. At each park event, children gathered spontaneously to use the slides and interact socially. No serious accidents occurred during the waterslide trials. To understand how the children used each waterslide, the activity at the waterslides was recorded by video. The minute of the highest activity level at the waterslide was quantitatively analyzed to determine the lines of flow surrounding the waterslide and the mean and maximum speeds attained while using the waterslide.