Development

What is a Pikler Triangle?

The Pikler Triangle was developed over 100 years ago by Hungarian pediatrician, Dr Emmi Pikler and it’s stuck around and hasn’t really changed that much. To put simply, it’s a wooden climbing frame. While traditional outdoor playgrounds and climbing equipment are targeted towards the older child with already developed gross motor skills, the Pikler Triangle is especially suitable for smaller children whose coordination and motor skills are still evolving. Thus, it can be used for children as young as 6 months to even 4-5 years old. Since it’s easy to assemble and carry, the Pikler Triangle can be used both indoors and outdoors.

Traditional toys and parenting thoughts would encourage parents to help children with using toys and climbing on them well before they are capable of climbing onto it themselves, since their own coordination and motor skills do not allow it yet. Although the parents’ desire to see the child in a fun mood and playful game is understandable, this practice inhibits the child’s development, as the child is unable to experience the limits of his or her physical abilities and develop at his or her own pace by shifting boundaries. As a child learns to walk, the child will drop more at first, but through effort and learning about his or her body, the child will develop balance and coordination, and falls are less and less frequent.

This is where the Pikler triangle comes in to help, that allows the child to learn about his or her body and boundaries at own pace and in a way that doesn’t make parents worry. Compared to the outdoor playgrounds, which due to their height are dangerous and unsuitable for young children, the Pikler triangle is only 76 cm high and the child can climb as high as his abilities allow.

For this reason, it is not necessary to adjust the height of the triangle as the child grows – toddlers aged 6-8 months can use the triangle sticks to lift themselves, but 4-5 year olds can already climb to the top of the triangle and develop themselves in a more demanding environment. The Pikler Triangle can be used for hut, climbing tree, slide or anything else, and so the child will not get tired of the triangle so quickly, providing the joy of discovery for a longer period of time. But if the Pikler triangle is no longer exciting for the kid, he or she is ready to play on the bigger playgrounds. Check out our selection of products in our online shop – we have a wide selection of different colors!

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