Why The Sandbox Rocks!

by Shelly Bokman

Do you remember playing in the sandbox for hours on end when you were little? I do. Sadly, this simple, creative play activity has gone the way of rotary phones and mixed tapes, still fun and cool, but considered quaint by most and getting rarer all the time. Luckily for our kids, retro is IN, and Sacramento Parent would like to bring the sandbox back! There is nothing more appropriate for a young child to be doing with their time than open-ended play, out-of-doors, with a variety of simple items.

Even if you live in an apartment with only a small deck or patio, you can easily create a small sandbox for your child. Just get an inexpensive wading pool, and fill it with a couple of bags of play sand from Home Depot or Lowe’s. If you have a backyard available, build a simple wooden frame and line the bottom with plastic sheeting, then fill it with sand. Toys “R” Us also has plastic sandboxes for sale, usually with lids. If possible, place your sandbox near a water spigot so you can run the hose into the sandbox. (And if you have cats around, be sure to cover your sandbox with a tarp when it’s not in use.)

Once you have your sandbox set, it’s time to look for interesting things to add. Small plastic dinosaurs are always fun. They will need mountains to climb and caves to hid in. Fish or boats are a great addition, but of course they will need a river or a lake to be in (that’s why your hose is important). Different sizes and shapes of buckets, old coffee cans or plastic glasses are useful for creating castles and forts. Leaves and twigs will become a forest to surround the castle.

On another day race cars will require that an intricate track be built for them. And on yet another day a collection of measuring cups, spoons, old pie pans and bowls will turn your sandbox into a neighborhood bakery (and that neighborhood might be anywhere—Paris, Rome, Hong Kong...). Dump trucks, shovels, sea shells, squirt bottles, rubber duckies… The list is endless when it comes to what’s fun to play with in the sand. Give them the items, maybe make a simple suggestion, but turn your children loose and see what wonderful ways they find to play in their sandbox. Toddlers old enough to know that sand isn’t for eating, right on up to school-age kids will enjoy endless hours of sandbox play time.

OK, I can just hear some of you now… "Yeah, sounds like fun, but what a mess!" Yes, it can be messy, but set your limits right from the start. Sand stays outside, or in the sandbox, or wherever you need it to stay. Shoes come off before kids come back in the house, or, better yet, let them play in their bare feet and leave a towel by the door for them to clean off. If your kids are the sort to get completely coated in what they play with, then dress them in their swimsuits and just hose them down when they’re done. The little bit of effort is worth the truly authentic play that develops in a sandbox. And remember, it’s out of that kind of play that little imaginations grow up to be big and strong.