Playground Improvements to Make Using ESSER Funding

The Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) fund is a wonderful opportunity for schools to improve the lives of the kids in their care. If you still have ESSER funds available, consider using them to enhance your school’s playground. Outside of classrooms, playgrounds are the heart of the school, where kids can have fun and learn important life lessons.

In this guide, we’ll dive more into the ESSER fund and what it covers, plus innovative playground improvements you can make using your school’s ESSER fund.

The Role of ESSER Funds in Schools

The United States government created the ESSER fund in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. This fund’s main purpose is to help schools respond and recover from the pandemic, namely the loss of instructional time. Three laws support the ESSER fund — the American Rescue Plan Act, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, and the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act.

The idea of the ESSER fund is to help schools improve children’s social, emotional, and mental well-being, meet academic needs, and increase overall health and safety. The fund also encourages schools to provide extra support for those most impacted by the pandemic, such as students with disabilities or low-income students.

You can look to the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act, and the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act for ideas on how to use ESSER funding.

Any state education agency and local education agency can use ESSER funds, but the cutoff is the end of September 2024.

Using ESSER Funding for School Playgrounds

One of the best ways you can use ESSER funds for your school is to install or upgrade outdoor playgrounds. Playgrounds address the key areas of the ESSER fund, such as student well-being, inclusivity, and learning. Playgrounds provide multiple benefits for kids at school, such as increased social skills, physical activity, creativity, cognitive function, confidence, and self-esteem. Plus, they create a safe space for children to be free and have fun, which is important for all students and their perception of school.

Engage with students and educators at your facility to find ways to improve your school’s playground. It can also help to assess all the current playground equipment to address maintenance needs and improve access for students with disabilities.

Innovative Improvements in School Playgrounds

If you need some examples of how you can use ESSER funding to improve your school’s playground, we’ve provided some options below. These ideas center around inclusivity, education, and sustainability to provide the most value to teachers and students.

1. Inclusivity

The ADA requires certain levels of access to playgrounds for kids with disabilities. While ADA compliance in playgrounds is vital for legal reasons, there is much more you can do to make kids of all abilities feel like they belong. This is where accessibility — the minimum standard for public spaces —  turns into inclusivity, where there are fewer limitations for kids with disabilities.

Here are a few ways you can encourage inclusive play on your school’s playground:

• Inclusive equipment: The equipment and play structures you choose contribute the most to promoting inclusivity and accessibility in playgrounds. Spinners with ground access, swings with inclusive seats, accessible activity panels, and ramps with double rails are all examples of equipment with equal play opportunities.
• Vary challenge levels: Each section of the playground should include a variety of components that vary in difficulty. This way, kids of all abilities can play in every area of the playground together, which helps to decrease feelings of exclusion and inadequacy.
• Quite spaces: Adding fun sound equipment is great for kids to explore, but some children feel overwhelmed by loud sounds. To provide a reprieve for their auditory senses, place quiet areas further away from loud areas. You can also consider adding a sensory-dampening structure that offers a secure space to retreat.

At Little Tikes Commercial, we’ve partnered with the nonprofit organization Unlimited Play to help us create certified inclusive playgrounds for our clients. Unlimited Play specializes in accessible playgrounds and sets the standard for what these types of playgrounds should be like. They provide marketing, fundraising and outreach support at no additional fee for communities who commit to building Platinum or Gold level playgrounds that fit their requirements.

2. Education

With the amount of teaching time lost due to the pandemic, it’s even more essential for schools to add educational elements to their playgrounds. These encourage learning outside the classroom and maximize their time at school. What’s more, outdoor play can increase academic performance in the classroom.

Below are some educational playground equipment options to inspire your playground improvements:

• Activity panels: Unique interactive panels with different colors, textures, and activities give kids another form of play and promote learning at the same time. Ensure these are at an accessible level so all kids on the playground can interact with them.
• Braille panels: Kids of all abilities can use braille panels to learn more about the alphabet, time, and other subjects using sight and touch. The bumps from the braille will draw their interest and turn learning into a tactile experience.
• Musical instruments: Playground musical equipment lets children get creative with sounds and rhythm on their own terms. This is a fantastic opportunity to learn more about the art form and express their feelings in a healthy way.

3. Sustainability

Sustainability should be a core consideration throughout all design aspects, and school playgrounds are a perfect place to implement sustainable solutions. Beyond lessening your school’s environmental impact, sustainable practices on the playground provide a good example to children and their families of how they should treat the planet.

If you’d like to make your playground more environmentally friendly, consider the following:

• Sustainable materials: An easy choice you can make when selecting playground equipment is to choose materials that are either made from recycled materials or easily recyclable.
• Solar power: If you have lights and other electrical components in your playground, consider installing solar panels to generate electricity for them. Solar power is a sustainable alternative that will provide cost savings in the long run. You can also choose an all-in-one option with integrated solar technology. An example is our PlaySoleil® solar lighting solution that is affordable, efficient and lasts for more than six hours at night.
• Recycling bins: What kids learn at school shapes them as they grow, and schools can encourage recycling by installing recycling bins where children eat, such as on playgrounds. These bins are a great learning opportunity that will also reduce littering.

Partner With Little Tikes Commercial for Your Playground Project

At Little Tikes Commercial, we don’t just sell commercial playground equipment. We’re the masters of theme and thrive on helping people make exciting and inspiring playgrounds for children of all ages. Inclusivity is at the heart of what we do — we believe children of all abilities should experience the wonders of imaginative play.

If your school is considering using its ESSER funds to upgrade its playground, we’d love to help. Our team of playground experts is well-versed in the art of fundraising and the ESSER fund. We can work with you to maximize your budget and create an inclusive playground where all kids feel welcome. Sustainability is also a top priority of ours, and we use recycled materials wherever possible.

Explore our inspiration gallery for ideas for your next playground project and to see examples of our high-quality work. If you’re ready to put your ESSER funds to use, request a quote from our team today!