During the fourth year of its war in Ukraine, the Russian military has stepped up strikes against civilians and their daily necessities, from homes to energy supplies. One frequent target has been children’s outdoor playgrounds. They have been chosen perhaps to evoke deep fears and weaken wartime morale. The highest single-incident death toll for children occurred during a Russian attack in April at a crowded park for families in Kryvyi Rih, the hometown of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Yet, rather than neglecting a child’s need for joy and learning in open-ended play, Ukrainians and foreign donors have been building new recreational places – to allow kids to be kids. These include “pop-up” playgrounds brought into safe buildings by mobile teams. Many of the newly built underground schools include recreation rooms that allow for soccer, chess, dancing, and other activities. In relatively safe areas of Ukraine, new outdoor playgrounds have been built with modern designs to bring neighborhoods together.
These child-focused efforts bring healing and social cohesion to help Ukraine survive as a sovereign country. Yet, as first lady Olena Zelenska points out, they also relieve children of a long-term label as victims and instead adopt an identity of resilience. “We in Ukraine do not want them to become a generation of war. We want them to become a generation of victory,” she told German broadcaster ZDF.
Whether they know it or not, Ukrainians are honoring a child’s “right … to engage in play,” which is protected under the United Nations’ Convention on the Rights of the Child. Last year, on June 11, the U.N. celebrated the first International Day of Play. One purpose of the celebration is to preserve the idea of children as innocent in world trouble spots such as Ukraine.
“Play is how children learn to navigate the world,” a U.N. website states. “It helps them to build narratives, knowledge and social skills and contributes to their overall development.”
When drones and bullets are flying overhead in war, a playground is not just a playground, whether it’s indoors or outdoors. In Ukraine, a child’s love of play is a necessary antidote to fear.
