Teenagers. Teenagers don’t play – or at least they don’t call it play: The teenage years is the period of their lives where our children need to be with peers.

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Teenagers - 12 - 19 growth spurt and independence

Teenagers don’t call what they do play. Teenagers hang out. But maybe even more than earlier

opportunities to meet and move are crucial to the teenagers feeling of belonging, of being noticed. Few things are as important to teenagers as being noticed. Teenage activities are manifold, but sports and games are popular, as is climbing and balancing. Physical activity is important to this age group, due to the growth spurt they undergo. But also because of the lack of movement in a normal teenage day. Things that seem a bit scary or daring, where you can show off, are popular. But not least, places to hang out, places of their own, are important to teenagers.

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Teenage years - troublesome or triumphant
No life period is as hated and loved as the teenage years – songs are still being written, angry neighbors still being found every day, witnessing in each their way the troublesome, yet fascinating, transition period of the teenage years.

For our children this ought to be mainly a time of triumph: they are finally being initiated to grown up life, they can finally manage most things on their own. But in an environment with often confused norms, what is right and wrong? This is where most teenagers still need adult supervision.

Physical development – the growth spurt
Teenagers grow at an amazing rate. In fact 23% of teenage boys’ total growth lies in the years between approximately 10-16 years. The growth behaves highly unfairly: they grow outside - in. This means that feet and hands grow big first and only gradually the rest of the limbs follow. The rapid growth challenges the sense of balance of the kids – they often get clumsy.

The teenage girls have a more unmarked growth spurt and usually have finished it at about 15 years. Teenage girls have balance trouble too: A Danish study of single accidents among Danish handball girls showed a surprising amount, which was decreased by 60 % as soon as balance training was made part of the schedule before the matches. With our knowledge of training of the sense of balance, spinning equipment and balance equipment should be offered to teenage children.

Cognitive development – the brain and learning
Neurological studies of the teenage brain shows that the frontal lobes of teenagers grow considerably. The frontal lobes are the centers of our strategically thinking. The work of the frontal lobes is being coordinated by the cerebellum. Cerebellum is commonly known as the center of gross motor skills. This gives way for the thesis that physical activity is crucial to efficient learning. With the words of Jay Giedd M.D. of the National Institute of Mental Health, University of North Dakota, USA

”The recess and play seems to be the first thing that is cut out of school curriculums in tight times. But those actually may be as important, or maybe even more important, than some of the academic subjects that the children are doing.”

At a time with lack of movement and growing obesity among teenagers, this is just another good reason for offering appealing possibilities for play for our teenagers.

Social and emotional development
Teenagers need to be with peers. The friends are the only ones to understand just how ignorant the parents are and just how little you can do about it. Group belonging means everything to teenagers. The social successes or failures have a big impact on their emotional development. Emotionally teenagers are often quite experimenting – to play with different roles or personalities helps them understand themselves – today a nice girl, tomorrow a punk – and the truth might lie somewhere between the extremes.

Teenagers don’t play – or at least they don’t call it play: The teenage years is the period of their lives where our children need to be with peers more than ever – and the time where we as adult planners or politicians do very little to make appealing possibilities to meet and move. Even though statistics show that cooperation with teenagers on planning a place for them makes the vandalism on the younger children’s playgrounds decrease considerably, we still see few nice teenage hangouts.

The lack of nice teenage hangouts can only confirm the sometimes doubtful and skeptical teenagers in the belief that adults and society do not at all understand them. With every place we make for the teenagers, we do not only make a place that enhances their chances of a better physical, social and learning ability – we also make a clear signal that we understand their needs and want to listen.

Sources:

Adolescent Growth and Motor Performance – A Longitudinal Study of Belgian Boys
Ref. G.P. Beunen et.alt. Human Kinetics Books, 1988

Skolebørn, fysisk aktivitet og idrætsskader I Svendborg Kommune (School Children, Physical Activity and Sport Damages in the Community of Svendborg, Karsten Froberg et alt., Odense University (now: University of Southern Denmark),1995
Youth Shelters and Sports Systems – a good practice guide, Roger Hampshire and Mark Wilkinson, Thames Valley Police and The University of West of England, 2002
Workshop GALK (Conference of the City Gardeners in Germany)
Ständige Konferenz der Gartenamtsleiter beim Deutschen Städtetag).“Spielen in der
Stadt“, coordinated by Dr. Regine von der Haar. www.galk.de

Copyright KOMPAN A/S

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