Why host a Play Day?

Have fun! First and foremost, your Play Day is about adults and kids coming together to have fun and enjoy games, fresh air, and good company.

Strengthen your community. In our busy lives, it can be hard to make time to spend with your neighbors, parents at your child’s school, or other important communities in your life. Joining forces to organize and participate in a Play Day strengthens community ties.

Improve your playground. Though not a required component, many Play Days include a service element so that you can leave your park or playground in better condition than it was when you arrived. This can involve planting flowers or trees, building new amenities like benches or picnic tables, painting murals, cleaning up, and much more! Check out the Play Day Planner for more ideas and instructions for all improvement projects.

Advocate for play. Play is on the decline. By participating in this program, you are joining a national movement and helping KaBOOM! spread the message that play is vital for America’s children.

Why use the Play Day Planner?

Get grants. By using the Play Day Planner, you can apply for grants to help fund bigger improvement projects on your playground. Five Play Day grants will be available in 2010: one $10,000 First Place, one $7,500 Second Place and three $2,500 Runner-Ups. To become eligible for one of the grants, include an improvement project in your Play Day and complete all required components of the Play Day Planner.

Access resources. The Play Day Planner gives you access to our online Play Day tools, which include lots of great resources to help you organize your Play Day, including dozens of activity cards that are filled with ideas for games, improvement projects and advocacy actions.

Share ideas. Through the Play Day Planner you can connect with other Play Day organizers, trading tips and ideas for anything from food to music to playground improvement projects.