My favorite playgrounds
The first Six are accessible for strollers, wheel chairs, walkers, canes, and children who might wander.
1. Haskell Field in Sudbury: Far and away the best playground for children of all abilities. Corner of Hudson and Fairbanks roads Sudbury. It has a fence going all the way around for those who might wander. Somehow they made the climbing equipment accessible and challenging at the same time. Bathrooms on site. Smile playground in Sudbury
2. Ronan McElligott Playground: 55 Williams Ave Westford, MA : I have not been here, but understand it is beautiful and accessible for all children. It is at Edwards Beach in Westford. To find out more visit: Ronan’s Playground
3. The Playscape at Ripley: 120 Meriam Rd. Concord: A playscape is a unstructured, naturalized playground. I was lucky enough to be an adviser on the early phase of this playground, and some amazing folks have worked really hard to make this beautiful space. From a wheel chair accessible merry go round to a pumping station, it is a beautiful and creative space. To find out more about this unusual space visit : Ripley Playscape
4. The Playscape at the Discovery Museums Acton MA. Although they state they are fully accessible, I give it 85% accessibility if your child is in a wheel chair. There are some areas in the woods on the hill that would be tough to get to. The tree house is fully accessible and very cool. You need to pay admission to the museums to get into the playscape- unless you go on Fridays from 4:30-8:30 when it is free, or on one of their free dates for children with hearing loss, visual loss, or Autism Spectrum Disorder. Discovery Museum Playscape
5. Friendship Park: Roberts Field at 272 Old Westford Road, Chelmsford. This brand new playground replaced the older playground and has many options for different ages it is accessible, and fenced in.
6. Jones Field Acton MA: Martin St, Acton. This playground was redone over the past couple of years and is a great addition to accessible playgrounds in the area.
6. Goward Playground: Rt. 27 Acton MA. New playground, with challenging climbing areas, plus more typical climbing structures. They say they are fully accessible, but the surface is bark mulch. The is a nice paved path along the edge. It is behind the library, which has an indoor eating space, bathroom, and great children’s library section.
7. Bedford Community Playground: Mudge Way Bedford MA. Nice playground, bark mulch surface, across from town library, where there are bathrooms, child library section.
8. Emerson Playground: Thoreau St. Concord. This is next to the town pool, and track. Small and compact easy to keep track of everyone, fence most of the way around.
9. Castle in the Trees Littleton: 300 King st. Littleton MA. A bit tricky to find, you drive into a bit of a vacant lot, then you see the playground off to the right. If you want to practice stairs with your 2-3 year old this is the place to go. It has been fully updated in 2017.
10. McCurdy Track Harvard MA.– Lancaster County Rd, has track, playground and restrooms!
11. Hildreth School, Harvard MA.-27 Mass Ave Harvard has a lovely playground for preschool- 5 year olds, and can be used when school is not in session.
12 Jack Walsh Field in Westford- Griffen rd has a playground that preschoolers can enjoy.
For more barrier free playgrounds in Massachusetts visit :
Emerson Hospital’s Clough Family Rehab Center Hosts 6th iCan Shine Bike Camp at Lawrence Academy
With 40 campers and 106 volunteers this may have been our best camp yet! I can’t thank our https://icanshine.org/ crew enough. Kaitlyn, Lindsey and Kent instructed our volunteers, facilitated our campers and coached our families. And of course we could not have done it with out our volunteers!
Special Thanks to all our community supporters: The Bike Connector, Cataldo’s Nursery, Emerson Auxiliary, Goodale’s Trek Bike Shop, Lawrence Academy, and True North Hotels.
Can’t Wait until Next Year!
Volunteers Needed for Emerson Hospital iCan Shine Bike Camp
The Clough Family Center for Rehabilitation and Sports Therapies, and the Emerson Hospital Auxiliary are hosting their 6th iCan Shine Bike Camp over April School Vacation April 18-22, 2022 at the Lawrence Academy Hockey Rink, 26 Powder House Road in Groton MA.
We are looking for volunteers aged 15 and older to join us! There are 5 sessions a day, sign up for one or more sessions, as many days as you can.
You will recieve a tee shirt, certificate with volunteer hours, and the joy of teaching someone with special needs how to ride a 2 wheeled bike.
check out this video to learn more about camp: https://abcnews.go.com/US/kids-special-learn-ride-bikes/story?id=54588338
To register to volunteer: https://icanshine.org/ican-bike-groton-ma/
For Questions: reach out to- Mary Evans PT, Camp Director at: icanshinebike_rehab@emersonhosp.org
Emerson iCan Shine Bike Registration is Open !
Join us for our 6th iCan Shine Bike Camp at Lawrence Academy in Groton MA.
Emerson Clough Family Center Outpatient Pediatric Rehab is excited to be bringing back this important program. Open to youth and adults 8 years and older who have special needs and would like to learn to ride a typical 2 wheeled bike.
To Register click on the link below:
https://icanshine.org/ican-bike-groton-ma/
iCan Shine trainers with adapted bikes teach campers how to ride, gaining confidence and skills, so that by day 3, 4 or 5 they “launch” onto a two wheeled bike. Each camper has 2 volunteers to assist them in this process. Campers come for a 75 min session each day for 5 days. Scholarships are available.
Questions ? reach out to: Mary Evans PT Camp Director at icanshinebike_rehab@emersonhosp.org
Modify your home swing for Best Vestibular Input
Many children benefit from vestibular input. The vestibular system is the big muscle of the brain for building muscle tone, regulating our sensory systems, gaining coordination, and keeping our balance. It works closely with our visual system, so we can run around a soccer field, catch a ball, and explore playgrounds effortlessly. The vestibular system responds to changes in speed and direction. Most home swings are made to move forward and back, which limits how much stimulation the vestibular system is getting. By adding strong bungy cords and a swivel hook, you can transform almost any swing. This will allow you to carry over suggestions from your occupational or physical therapist into your backyard play.
Special Thank you to Super Dad Pat for passing along this great set up!
Pediatric Physical Therapy 