The EveryBODY Plays Program Guide was developed to serve as an educational resource for communities that are planning, revitalizing, and/or building playgrounds. This guide, provided by GameTime, is intended to provide meaningful educational materials that help people understand the value of and necessity for inclusive, universally designed outdoor play environments for people of all abilities, families, and communities. Universally designed playgrounds are good for all people and they help promote inclusive, intergenerational play. Our program principles are designed for children, as they are our primary user group, but they are also developed to bring benefit to people of all ages and abilities.

A priority of this program is to advocate for play from the child’s perspective. In other words, we have focused not just on what adults believe to be developmentally important but also on the actual experiences and feelings the child has during play.

These tools will educate and guide you through a unique planning process, helping you be an effective advocate for the strengths and abilities of the special populations in your community.

What is Universal Design?
A place where EveryBODY plays together.

Children play – it’s what they like to do and what they’re good at, but it’s also something that they need to do. Play provides children with a means of understanding the world around them. Play is critical to the healthy development of every child. Through no fault of their own, opportunities for independent play may be less available to children with disabilities as a result of barriers in the play environment. These barriers may be physical barriers to access or social barriers to participation. The Americans with Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines for Play Areas require the removal of physical barriers to access in play environments. While necessary, physical accessibility does not guarante social accessibility, or the opportunity to participate. Universal Design is an approach to designing products, services, and environments to be usable by as many people as possible regardless of their ability. Usability is the key concept of Universal Design. It is important to understand that play environments may be accessible, yet not usable. Proximity does not guarantee participation, nor does accessibility guarantee inclusion. Universally designed play environments move beyond accessibility and seek to create usable play environments which recognize everyone’s right to equality of play opportunity, full participation in play, and the independence of the child. Play is very much a social event and the opportunity to be included should be accessible to EveryBODY. GameTime’s universally designed play environments are created by thoughtfully considering the individual and their strengths and ability to participate in play independently and equally with their friends, family, and neighbors. The emphasis is not on helping the person with a disability to adjust and accept the play environment, but rather designing the play environment to accommodate the needs and abilities of the person. GameTime’s universally designed play environments follow seven principles of design to remove the physical and social barriers so EveryBODY can fully participate in play.

Our Play Activity Grids illustrate the usage of specific playground activities, which are as important a consideration as the overall environmental design. The grids are designed to further advance the philosophy of Universal Design. Each grid demonstrates how the activity is relevant to the 7 Principles and, in addition, validates the key features for a variety of developmental applications. The grid also addresses the activity’s significance for children of all abilities. Click the "Get More Info" tab above to request a copy of our EveryBODY Plays guidebook, and to receive a free download of our accessibility PlayGrids!