Gimpo-si and Namyangju-si Benchmark Visit to 'Sangsang N Noliteo Doreureu' Playground

Namyangju City, Gyeonggi Province (Mayor Joo Gwang-deok) announced on the 7th that officials from Gimpo City visited Namyangju City’s SangsangN Playground Branch No. 5 ‘Doreureu’ on the 6th to tour the infant and toddler play facilities and conduct operational benchmarking.

Officials from Gimpo City are visiting Namyangju City's Sangsang N Playground Branch 5, 'Doreureu,' to tour the infant and toddler play facilities and conduct operational benchmarking. Photo by Namyangju City

The visit included four officials from Gimpo City’s Welfare Bureau and Childcare Departments. The tour and sharing of operational cases were conducted to support the expansion project of Gimpo City’s Childcare Comprehensive Support Center branches (such as Ai Sarang Playground and Toy Library).

Doreureu, a Namyangju-style public indoor playground, was created based on the creativity and scientific principles inspired by Jeong Yak-yong, a practical scholar of the Joseon Dynasty. It is a space that respects each child’s play characteristics and fosters creativity and curiosity, offering an open play environment and diverse play content.

In particular, the ‘Atelier’ and ‘Material Research Lab’ operate based on the educational philosophy of the ‘Reggio Emilia Approach,’ which emphasizes children’s voluntary learning and exploration. They support child-centered and play-centered creative experiential activities and conduct open play programs using everyday materials and unstructured playthings.

After touring the second-floor physical playground areas including ‘Play Plaza,’ ‘Imagination Hideout,’ and ‘Doreureu Plaza,’ the Gimpo City officials experienced the Reggio program firsthand at the third-floor Atelier and exchanged ideas on playground creation and operational methods.

After the tour, a Gimpo City official said, “What impressed me was that everything at Doreureu can become a toy, and children can create their own play. Not only the playground but also the play content has Namyangju’s unique characteristics, making it feel like a gift left by Jeong Yak-yong.”

A city official stated, “We appreciate Gimpo City selecting Namyangju’s ‘Doreureu’ as a benchmarking target and visiting us. We will continue to strive to provide more creative and beneficial play spaces for children. We also hope that excellent play spaces for children will be established in Gimpo City.”

Meanwhile, since its opening, Doreureu has been continuously benchmarked by various local governments, universities, and institutions including the National Museum. For detailed information regarding Doreureu’s operation and benchmarking, please contact Namyangju City’s Childcare Policy Division, Childcare Project Team.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.