Project Statement
Playin is a versatile playground integrated into a modern, contemporary sectional that lets kids stay active and safe while teaching them valuable skills like balance, strength and body coordination. As the rise of electronics competes with opportunities for kids to get active, obesity rates in the United States have more than tripled in the last 50 years. The COVID-19 pandemic has only contributed to this trend as many outdoor parks were closed, forcing kids to remain indoors and limiting their opportunities to get out and play. As many parents know, these outdoor environments are much more conducive to active play, yet children will often bring the same level of energy indoors, leading to the use of indoor furniture in place of dedicated play equipment. Sports like gymnastics can help kids to channel this energy towards learning useful skills like body coordination, flexibility, sportsmanship and confidence, but home gymnastics equipment is often large, bulky and brightly colored, standing out against the backdrop of a modern home.
Playin is designed to provide an indoor space for your child to learn and play safely while still looking like a beautiful piece of furniture that complements your home. The different configurations allow your kids to work on a variety of different skills with the only limit being their imagination, while mom and dad have a beautiful couch that can fit right in with the rest of their home.
My inspiration for the project space comes from my background as a competitive gymnast, as I spent 14 years competing and 3 years coaching young kids before I came to college and am now president of the club gymnastics team on campus. The sport is very close to my heart and I have long wanted to work on a project in the field, so when the topic of my senior thesis came up I jumped at the opportunity to finally work on it. With the arrival of the pandemic, I knew several old teammates as well as famous gymnasts who were barred from training in the gym and had to adjust their workouts to only what they could do at home. It got me thinking about all the young kids I used to coach as well as every other young child interested in gymnastics who were now also stuck at home, unable to go back to the gym and practice the sport they loved. I wanted to work on something in that problem space, as traditional gymnastics equipment is not an area I could improve upon for it is not something that innovates and changes every few years, but home gymnastics equipment is definitely a space I could work on innovating.
