10.04.2013 - Ausgabe: 2/2013

Nursery school becomes an inspiring children’s adventure playground

By Dieter Meermeier and Doreen Munder, Planwerkstadt Meermeier Wiesel GbR

When the project was instigated in 2008, the objective was to transform the outdoor sections of the Daberstedter Kinderglück child day care centre during a replacement new build project into a semi-natural and inspiring children’s play landscape. It was to be an area in which children aged 0 – 6 years would be able to creatively explore and develop their skills. There was also a wish list of play features and educational objectives.

Gradually an idea began to take shape in the heads of the planners; they would give this site an inspirational distinctiveness by taking an unconventional approach. Why not tell an exciting story in the form of a fantasy landscape? They thought that Astrid Lindgren’s enlightened tale of Ronia, the Robber’s Daughter would fit the bill precisely and freely recounted elements of the narrative represent the core theme of this unique, highly varied and uninhibited children’s adventure playground called Räuberland - Robberland.

The diverse and, in some cases, well-established range of trees on the site with an area of some 5000 m2 were used as the green basis for the plan. The originally flat terrain was converted to a range of rolling hills with many enchanted ‘secret hideaways’ concealed by shrubbery, thus recreating the environment of mountains and valleys where Ronia the robber’s daughter has her adventures. She lives with her father Mattis, the leader of a band of robbers who inhabit Mattis’ stronghold, and meets and becomes friends with Birk Borkason, the son of the chieftain of a rival clan of robbers who inhabit the other half of the stronghold. The territories of the two feuding families are separated by a chasm created by a lighting strike that also split the stronghold in two parts. But, unsurprisingly, the two children find a way of coming together.

Now, starting from the main lairs of the Mattis and Borka robber clans, children can imagine themselves as bold robbers as they pass through the Perglatzen cave (where they can admire the Perglatzen treasure), continue up hill and down and through the valley of the wolf until they reach the bear’s cave surrounded by rocky escarpments . Here, the drowsy bear guards his realm, keeping a wary eye on the fish from the robbers’ brook that he has hung up to dry at the mouth of his cave. Next, the children need to exhibit their skills and a sense of balance to negotiate the narrow path through the Mattis forest on tree trunks and ropeways, where there are hideouts concealed among the low treetops. Wood shavings litter the ground to break the fall of anyone unfortunate enough to take a tumble. The route passes by the hollow where the grey gnomes live. From here on, the little robbers need to be on their guard to ensure they avoid the black trolls who lurk everywhere in the vicinity. A well-designed robber’s scooter trail passes through most of the dramatic grounds, so that it is possible to rapidly escape the trolls should one be unfortunate enough to encounter them.

This robber world also incorporates the elements of fire, water and earth. Located in the belly of a giant snake is the robbers’ garden. The flavoursome garden produce that can be harvested here can be grilled and enjoyed together with crusty campfire bread prepared on the open barbeque. Sand can be used to construct dams in the robbers’ brook to collect water and redirect the flow, but are as often washed away as soon as built. On particularly hot days, the little robbers can enjoy the feel of water in different intensities on their naked skin in the form of tropical downpours, drizzle or a fine mist.

For the toddlers who are not yet quite as adventurous as their older fellows, a less challenging and more protected environment is provided in the realm of the Rump-gnomes. Here they can find a shelter, a hideaway, an arbour and, for the more audacious, a low-level slide. In this part of Robberland everything is a little smaller, flatter and easier to oversee. Here they can scrabble around and play in the sand to their hearts’ content and undertake their first attempts at walking and sliding.

The construction process, from planning phase to completion, lasted from spring 2008 to summer 2010. Creative timber architect firms were invited to submit tenders for the realisation of the highly complex plans for this play attraction, and the contract was definitively won by Spielart GmbH. In addition to the particular sensitivity of their design, what gave them the edge was their proposal to use naturally grown robinia wood, with its excellent durability, to construct the equipment. The play equipment specifically designed for Robberland readily harmonises with the concepts for the landscape intended to mirror the story and also, to some extent, contributes to the retelling of the tale, allowing the imagination of the young users to take flight in many different ways. This is important in so far as children need to be able to use their imagination to develop complex and cognitive play behaviour patterns that, in their turn, promote the development of the personality and social skills.

This multi-layered, never-boring world of adventure has been embraced with enthusiasm, a fact reflected in its new name of Räuberland – Robberland. It has become the venue for an annual robbers’ festival at which large and small robbers can don the garb worn by robbers long ago to enjoy the colourful events taking place in this world of robbers.

This children’s adventure playground does not represent the work of one single organisation. On the contrary, it is the result of productive team work and extensive collaboration between youth welfare office, Erfurt’s garden and graveyard authority, Planwerkstadt Meermeier Wiesel GbR, the personnel at the nursery school/crèche centre and parent representatives.

Foto: Spielart