Abstract
Urban schoolyard environments are increasingly characterized by a proliferation of hard surfaces with little if any greenery. Schoolyard “greening” initiatives are becoming increasingly popular; however, schoolyard designs often fail to realize their restorative potential. In this quasi-experimental study, a proposed schoolyard greening project was used to visualize alternative planting designs and seasonal tree foliage; these design alternatives were subsequently used as visual stimuli in a survey administered to children who will use the schoolyard to assess the perceived restorative capacity of different design features. The findings indicate that seasonal changes in tree foliage enhance the perceived restorative quality of schoolyard environments. Specifically, fall foliage colour, when compared to green foliage, is rated as being perceived to be equally restorative for children. Additionally, seasonal planting, including evergreen conifers, may enhance the restorative quality of the schoolyard especially when deciduous trees are leafless. Landscape design professionals, community-based organizations, and other decision-makers in schoolyard greening efforts should strategically consider their tree choices to maximize year-round support for healthy attention functioning in children through restoration.
Highlights
Seasonal influence on human behaviour and mood is widely recognized, but not well understood, especially in school-aged children [1,2]
The strategic and targeted design of children’s schoolyard environments offers great potential impact upon children’s mental and physical health and well-being, as this is an environment to which children have regular and prolonged daily exposure, and which may benefit their mental health, concentration, and ability to learn. This present work explores the influence of seasonal changes in canopy tree foliage and seasonal planting design strategies upon perceived attention restoration in elementary school children in a case study school in London, Ontario, Canada
This study suggests that children perceived the restoration offered by schoolyard trees as being schoolyard trees?
Summary
Seasonal influence on human behaviour and mood is widely recognized, but not well understood, especially in school-aged children [1,2]. The strategic and targeted design of children’s schoolyard environments offers great potential impact upon children’s mental and physical health and well-being, as this is an environment to which children have regular and prolonged daily exposure, and which may benefit their mental health, concentration, and ability to learn. This present work explores the influence of seasonal changes in canopy tree foliage and seasonal planting design strategies upon perceived attention restoration in elementary school children in a case study school in London, Ontario, Canada. Using a proposed schoolyard greening design as the base for the development of a three-dimensional digital visualization model, variations in planting design and seasonal foliation changes were created for use as stimulus images in a perceived attention restoration survey.
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