Ann Van Middlesworth Accessible Playground

I wanted to share some pictures of our trip to the new accessible playground in Ann Vann Middlesworth Park in Hillsborough.  The playground provides a great sensory and movement  experience to all children regardless of ability.   The entrance to the playground structure is a ramp.  No stairs in sight.

The first thing we saw coming up the ramp was the bongo drums.  There are two of different heights.  Across from the drums is a colorful music station.

Further along were two great stations.  One was a marble run that had a few different levers to start and stop the marbles.  The second was a race track with two cars that could be moved by turning a dial.

At the top of the ramp was a tunnel that led to the larger section of the structure.  The tunnel was bumpy on the inside rather than the typical smooth tunnel.  On this side there were a great variety of climbing walls and structures, in addition to a slide.  Steps also lead up to this section.

On the ground there was a spinning chair.  The nice thing about this seat is that children with balance difficulties will be safe in the deep seat and can still experience rapid spinning .

There was also a board with different animals engraved and their names in braille.  On the other side of the board were numbers written in braille.  My daughter liked tracing the animal outlines and talking about the body parts.

Near the playground there is a swing set with an adapted swing.  It is next to the other swings where children who need that extra support can swing with their friends and siblings.  The ground under the swings is a soft bouncy surface that is also under the playground structure.

We had a great time trying out the playground!  Since that day I’ve been back with two early intervention kiddos who had a  great time.  The playground provides kids of all abilities a place to come together and do what kids do best: play.