Playocracy: Where a child can be a child

This project takes place in the informal settlement of Obunga in Kisumu, Kenya at Juliana Apbet Primary School. The school focuses on education for orphans and vulnerable children. Troubled with harsh realities, these children are often forced to grow up quickly and take adult responsibilities in early age. Thus they miss out on an important part of childhood; that is playing, where they are allowed and encouraged to express themselves freely. This project aims at pedagogically transforming formative education by including creative play in both the teaching and the learning process of a child. To encourage diversity of perception and intelligences and the creation of an environment where a child can be a child. Playocracy is a tool to inject playful learning into conventional and obsolete form of teaching. It bridges the gap between the limitations of teaching and the curiosity of a child. Playocracy in this project has been manifested in the form of a playground that was built together with the children in twenty days. Child participation, Material Upcycling and Frugal innovation form the locus of this project.

Engulfing a 90 year old tamarind tree, this 30 square meter adventure playground is made of steel and timber. Steel forms the structural framework and timber (blue gum) forming the slabs. The playground comprises of a stage as singing and dancing is a major part of the Kenyan education. It is made out of Limestone, Clay, rammed Earth and cement. Discarded rubber tubes have been upcycled by weaving them into a mesh and abandoned bicycles have been dismantled to create aesthetic elements. This was a student project which was crowdfunding and partly funded by "Architects without borders-Sweden". This project has had a huge pedagogical transformation to teaching within the school as the playground is now bein used as classrooms, thereby realizing our aim to inject playful learning into teaching.

Achyut Siddu, Chalmers University of Technology (Masters program, Design for Sustainable Development)
Virginie Mure, Chalmers University of Technology (Masters program, Design for Sustainable Development)
Sara Mohammadi, Chalmers University of Technology (Masters program, Industrial Design Engineering)
Camilla Lundström, Chalmers University of Technology (Masters program, Industrial Design Engineering)