Author: Melissa Guffey

One of the reasons Recreation inSites offers KOMPAN products is because they are consistently on the cutting-edge of playground equipment. Their new Smart Playground “Hans Christian Andersen” product line is the first of its kind to offer an interactive learning experience by connecting the playground equipment with mobile devices to tell stories like “The Little Mermaid” simply by downloading their FREE apps!!!

Here’s more information on this revolutionary product line:

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PLAY SMART – The next generation playground

The fairy tales of Hans Christian Andersen – The Little Mermaid, The Ugly Duckling and The Tinderbox – are loved by children and adults all over the world.

For the first time ever, KOMPAN has built the fascinating themes of fairy tales into outdoor play designs, and combined age-appropriate physical challenges with a full digital package of fairy tales and virtual games supporting curriculum-relevant learning, edutainment and fun. The digital layer consists of five apps that can be downloaded from the App Store or Google Play – for free! The result is a new patent pending product line setting completely new standards for what a playground can offer. We call this the SMART PLAYGROUND.^TM

The SMART PLAYGROUND^TM offers abundant benefits:

• Age-appropriate physical challenges for 1-8 year olds
• Intergenerational – it unites children and adults through a common reference point, based on the beloved fairy tales of Hans Christian Andersen
• Curriculum-compliant learning
• The apps provide, the popular fairy tales of Hans Christian Andersen on the spot, for you to read or have read out loud in 16 different languages
• A strong basis for language stimulation through role play and apps
• Inspiration for good social behavior through the moral insights and universal truths of the fairy tales (e.g. learning about bullying from “The Ugly Duckling”)
• A vast number of digital games that support learning, edutainment and fun. This way adults and children alike can share play, learning and cultural experiences- at the playground, back home, or at school

Contact Melissa Guffey at 317.201.7056 or send her an email here for more information on SMART PLAYGROUND!

The Eppley Institute for Parks and Public Lands and the National Park Service (NPS) have produced three videos that illustrate the impacts of climate change on national parks. The Eppley Institute was privileged to partner with the Interpretive Development Program and the Climate Change Response Program (CCRP) on this project.

The videos were filmed on location at Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, Everglades National Park, and Kenai Fjords National Park by Indiana University Professor Emeritus Ron Osgood and cameraman Matt Bockelman, with assistance from NPS park ranger Matt Holly and staff members from each park.

Available on the CCRP website, the Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks video explores species loss, precipitation, and fire; the Everglades National Park video explores sea level rise; and the Kenai Fjords National Park video explores glacial changes. A fourth video, produced by the CCRP office in Washington, DC, is also available on the site. It explores phenology and citizen science at Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

These videos are part of a planned training effort that is aimed at NPS interpreters presenting programs on climate change. This training is currently under development and should be available in 2014. Additional videos for this training are also being completed by the CCRP office in Washington, DC.

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This was reproduced from the Epply Institute. Recreation inSites is proud to be a resource for all things park and recreation related! 

Macy’s Loves Parks (and so does Recreation inSites)!

Macy’s and Macy’s customers are showing their love for community parks March 7 – 31, 2014.

NRPA is partnering with Macy’s on a national program through nearly 700 Macy’s stores where donations will support a community park chosen by each individual store – with Macy’s offering to match the first $250,000 raised!

NRPA is pleased to partner with Macy’s to raise awareness and support for community parks. To learn more about the program and Macy’s support, visit www.macys.com/parks.

Recreation inSites proudly sponsored this year’s Great Lakes Park Training Institute!

It was a terrific event! We learned alot, met some terrific people, and had a great time at the event this year. If we met you for the first time at the conference, or you’re just getting familiar with Recreation inSites, please contact us here or call Melissa at 317.578.0588 to find out what we can do for you and your plans for a recreation area!

If we didn’t see you there, check it out next year! Here is a brief description of the event and the value it brings to the park industry in the Great Lakes region, particularly Indiana and Kentucky 😉 !!

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2014 Great Lakes Park Training Institute

The oldest and best parks and public lands training event held its 67th edition last week at Indiana’s Pokagon State Park.

The 2014 event featured a mixture of learning and fun that the Institute is famous for. Sessions at the 2014 Institute included maintenance, public speaking, visitor identification, natural resource exploration and much, much more! Social events included the first annual Toboggan Run Contest and Social, Awards Reception and Dinner, and Vendor Social.

This year also marked the inaugural Park and Recreation Facility Manager Certificate Program. The program uses the same acclaimed curriculum found in the Facility Manager Leaders Program presented by the Eppley Institute and the National Park Service. The program is a two-year course of study that will allow participants to build skills in park, facility, leadership, and team management. The program will help all participants improve their skills and prepare them for promotion to leadership positions in park and recreation agencies.

To learn more about the 2014 Great Lakes Park Training Institute, please visit www.glpti.org. The website has information about the 2014 schedule of events, new aspects of the Institute, and registrations.

Recreation inSites is proud to represent KOMPAN at the 2014 IPRA and looks forward to seeing everyone again this year. KOMPAN is introducing many innovative new products to our standard product lineup. Stop by and say hello and see what’s new with KOMPAN and the exciting products available in 2014. Look for Melissa Guffey at the conference, or contact her for more information!

Upcoming Projects

INDY Parks & Recreation has two new playground projects planned for 2014 which both include a KOMPAN Explorer Dome among other KOMPAN play equipment. Both Bertha Ross and Martin Luther King Junior Parks will soon feature an Explorer Dome for the community to enjoy:

Explorer Domes coming soon to Bertha Ross & MLK Parks!

KOMPAN and Recreation inSites in booth #66

We look forward to seeing you there!

COROCORD Rope Loops are now available in Kentucky and Indiana from Recreation inSites!

Climbing nets are the latest trend in playground equipment. COROCORD, the king of the climbing net, has developed a fresh take on these exciting structures and come out with a line of innovative climbing net products unlike anything seen before called COROCORD Rope Loops.

COROCORD Python Climbing Net Play Structure

It all began with a project nicknamed the “Green Wave” in Sweden which has transformed practically overnight into a worldwide sensation. With their unusual color concepts, COROCORD Rope Loops always form a central point of attraction in any environment. The curved tubular steel frames in various shapes wind through the area, giving these items of rope play equipment their unique shapes. This new style of rope net structure combines modern elements into an organic, fluid shape that looks equally stunning in urban as well as rural settings.

Designed to intrigue and challenge the children who will enjoy these structures, COROCORD Rope Loops represent the next wave of innovative play equipment to hit North America. The COROCORD Python seen above is just one of the many new designs introduced to motivate kids to get outside and be active.