When did your DC outgrow playgrounds and parks?

[TheGreatSchnauzerFest]

Very stuck on what to do with DC aged 11 and 9 this half term.

One DC has ASD and does not like to leave the house. I can hear the giggles of the neighbours young children frolicking in the sun whilst my DC are pinging away on video games

(One DC has been out all morning with friends and the other has done puzzles, some reading etc so they haven’t been on screens all day).

The weather is meant to be glorious tomorrow but I’m at a total loss of what to do.

DC with ASD hates crowds, parks, playgrounds etc. I think they’re sick of these things anyway after lockdown. DC with ASD will not go for walks.

Neither DC wants to do trampolining or crazy golf and they’ve outgrown soft play.

What is everyone with older children doing?

Watching with interest. My 9 year old still loves the park but 12 year old can’t be seen there with us! What about swimming? Our oil does a fun inflatables session on the weekends. Trip to the coast for fish and chips and ice cream? I’ll be watching for more ideas too.

Mine are much older. At 9&11 we did lots of long walks, bike rides, swimming,the beach, depends where you are but bigger play grounds like Leeds Castle (I am in Kent) were good, helpful to bring a friend. Did all the London Museums too. TBH it's a brilliant age.

My 12 and 10 year olds like going for walks by themselves up the hills or along the river (maybe not suitable for your asd child?), otherwise the 12yo does bugger all else.

We got a new playpark this week and it's heaving 24/7 with teens.

The 10yo is really into gardening atm.

They both like going to climbing walls, archery, zegways, go ape.

It's a tough age

I’m feeling like this too. Have a 10, 12 and 14 year old.
Too old for the park, they are fed up with walks. The boys won’t wander around the shops/Sunday market.

Eldest has hyper mobility so can’t ride a bike and because of that and when they were younger bikes going unused they don’t have bikes as pointless spending £100s on something not to be used.

Where abouts are you OP ?

My 11 year still likes the playground, but only ones which have a massive climbing frame/ zip line etc. Swimming no good at the moment because it's lane swimming only because of covid restrictions. Loves climbing walls. The cinema is always a good option.

I think the end of primary signaled the end of playgrounds sadly.

DD is 14 now and DS 10

DS and his mates still love the local park.
DD hasn't had any interest in an ordinary park for a couple of years now since secondary school but she does still like big adventure playground/ high rope type stuff if we can find anywhere. A big zip wire, a drop slide, a big rope climbing frame or course she will still have some fun with.
I doubt she would choose it for herself on her own with her mates but it still works as a day out for both of them.
They also both still like a long walk so if we find a country estate that has both those things and a cafe then it's a good day out for all.

@traumatisednoodle I agree, a brilliant age BUT we are restricted hugely as DC with ASD does not like to go out , especially to playgrounds or busy places. Swimming is unfortunately booking only due to covid and there are no sessions available for the entire week.

My 12 loves Adventure parks/playparks designed for older kids & will play at a normal playparks for a bit with her younger siblings. If I think she's going to get fed up I bring her book & we sit together & read as the wee ones play or she climbs as high as she can & reads there

tbh even my 6 is pretty unimpressed by normal playparks as she's an adrenaline junkie

Big interesting walks, a castle to explore, make a fire on the beach, lots of indoor climbing, swimming when we can get a slot, mine like to take some drawing or painting stuff on a walk if it's dry.

My 14 and 12 year old's still like the park and softplay when we get there, although it takes a lot of persuasion to get them off their screens to go out. It's my 6 year old who I am struggling with at the moment. He has ASD and can't social distance. He also likes to get really close to people and put random objects in his mouth. He is an escape artist so needs enclosed spaces. He can't cope with short time slots. None of his support groups or ASD friendly sessions are running so we are very limited where we can take him at the moment.

@TheGreatSchnauzerFest what kinda things does the ASD child like?

Cinema? That's a thing that both mine still enjoy together although it is a screen but at least it's an outing.

Escape room was also a big family outing hit last time we did it.

Mine do like a walk and the less crowded the better. They like it especially if there is some kind of thing to aim for or explore or if they can plan a route. Picnic also essential

Theme park I guess is the natural upgrade to adventure playground but would be crowded. Mine also love animals so safari park/ zoo is still a hit but again probably crowded. Lately I have been thinking of booking llama walking as a new idea and they were both keen on that

Nature reserves. Bird hides. Take binoculars, id books and snacks. A good mindful activity they can take into adulthood.

It really depends on the park. There's been an annoying trend near us to remove all the more adventurous equipment (monkey bars, zip wires, large adventurous climbing structures) in favour of equipment that is aimed at 5-10 year olds. The more adventure playgrounds we eked out until 12/13.
I found that they moved on to less structured play - climbing on trees and other natural structures (or skips :) ) was in favour long after playgrounds were too dull.

Mine still used some parks at that age, but it was getting to the end for the local ones. DS switched to going to the one with a football goal and taking a ball at that age, he still goes and kicks a ball about there now at 17, usually with a friend. DD would go in parks on holiday and away from home but not at home in case anyone she knew saw her. They were going to the occasional sport or drama camp while we were at work at that age too, then country parks, cinema, trampoline parks (our local one has SEN sessions, DS has ASD but is OK in the main ones). The occasional Go Ape type thing.

Another thing mine enjoy as an add on inventive to a walk/ nature thing is a scavenger hunt or a treasure hunt with clues. There's a site called Treasure Trails that you can download a trail from for most places in the UK for a few quiz and mine have enjoyed doing those.

Yes to Treasure Trails, also Geocaching.

What about "lone wolf" activities ? kyacking, cycling, go ape is great although expensive. Places tend to be quietist first thing.

I am day dreaming about outings because what has actually happened to our half term is that DS has had a Covid exposure at school in the last week so the poor bugger is quarantined for nearly all of half term. He is alternating between trampoline, reading, Lego and Minecraft. Just like the last how many months

I keep thinking surely it would be OK to go somewhere outside if he didn't get near anyone except us but I will abide by the rules. It just really really sucks.

What sort of things does your ASD child like?

We went to a museum on Saturday - due to Covid entry was limited so v few people there, only one family with children who seemed to be having a great time. In normal times it would have been packed.

Would they be happier if they knew the place definitely would not be crowded?

I have ASD and admit to loving the social distancing. I also never learned to ride a bike but did enjoy kayaking, much easier. I never did 'playing' so can appreciate why your DC has no time for playgrounds.

At that age, we bought some walkie talkie equipment and challenged them to hide from us. We walked the paths with the dog, and they hid from us and ambushed us. They rarely went more than 25m away because an ambush isn't possible from any serious distance, and we knew where they were because they didn't really get stealth or silence, plus the dog was crashing around between groups. It extended childhood quite successfully while giving them freedom to be brave and explore. It worked pretty well for nine to 12 year olds.

And after that we transferred the exploration to a city, without walkie-talkies. In a big museum for example.