Extract

Play seems to be simple and a fundamental activity. When children play, they learn – develop their physical capabilities, explore and experiment materials around them. It contributes to their physical, cognitive, social, cultural and emotional strengths and development. The purpose of this study is to examine the difference in the utilization of the current play environment between urban and rural play areas—specifically by examining children play satisfaction levels, interaction with natural elements and their frequency, analyse the relationship between the spatial features by studying the degree of affordance of the children to its immediate environment. The age group considered ranges between 6 to 12 years and data collection through playfield audit, on-site visits, survey and activities. The study suggests that children have affinity towards nature, however rural play environment offers a higher degree of affordance than urban play. The rural play builds curiosity and encourages them to invent newer opportunities with natural elements. Ironically, urban playscape senses a deficiency in creativity, which leads to a lesser connectedness towards nature. This study can become basis for designers to identify the landscape features in outdoor play areas that can create challenging, stimulating and meaningful play environments for the overall development of children.

Keywords: Affordance, Child development, Rural play, Urban play environment.

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