Sanbox Sand Causing Dangerous Situaiton Help

[daycare]

I have a very large sandbox, up to 10 kids can sit in it at one time..allthough I only have 6 kids.

the sandbox is sitting on my patio. No other place to put it. i have great grass every where else and my back yard is not that big

the kids dump the sand out of the box all of the time onto the concrete patio. When they do this, the concrete turns into an ice skating rink. It is so slippery that one can barely walk on it with out falling.

Of course I ask them to keep the sand in the box, but we know that's impossibe. Sand is from one end to the next.... i am contstanly having to sweep the sand back infront of the box and then having to scoop it up and back in it goes..

Does anyone have any advice of what I could put on the ground to stop the slipping from occuring??

[Blackcat31]

daycare...(I am NOT trying to sound snarky ) but why is it impossible to stop?

I have a big sandbox also (14x14) and NONE of my dck's dump sand out of the sandbox because they know the rules and if they break them, I ban them from the sandbox for the day. I am outside with them so I can catch them before they actually dump out sand but honestly, if they are big enough to be in the sandbox, they are big enough to follow the rules. If not; no sandbox.

If you have toddlers then I would simply suggest being with them in the sandbox and insisting they play only in a seated position away from the edges so sand cannot get out.

[daycare]

snarky not at all..

I guess my answer to that is I DONT KNOW...

If i see who the dumper is they are outta there..

I always play outside with the kids, but it always seems like someone dumps when I am not looking... they will take one of the sand toys and fill it outside of the sandbox when I am nto looking... It has been an ongoing battle...

[Blackcat31]

that's when you gotta make the other kids your eyes and ears for you. If I was looking the other way and didn't see someone dump I can rest assured that soembody will tell me immediately who dumped and where......:: Tattlers come in handy once in a while! LOL!!

[daycare]

that's when you gotta make the other kids your eyes and ears for you. If I was looking the other way and didn't see someone dump I can rest assured that soembody will tell me immediately who dumped and where......:: Tattlers come in handy once in a while! LOL!!

lmao ugh the tattlers.... good point... Guess I have a groups that has each others backs...ohhh that could be bad......hahahha

well if it does not stop I am going to get rid of the sanbox all together..

hey how come there are two post of this?

[Crystal]

ugh....I hate sandboxes. I use a sand table, so it helps with the mess a bit.

I think sand play needs CONSTANT supervision. I only allow the use of the sand table when I or another adult can continuously be by their side. There are to many possibilities, including sand in the eyes, or eating it, and as you know dump and slip....

If it is too much, I'd put something else in the sandbox....I have a pea gravel pit for the kids and it's fanatstic....maybe try putting pea gravel in it instead?

[QualiTcare]

i hate sand boxes probably only bc my daughter got a handful in her eyes and it was a horror.

anyway, i hate tattling also, but this is where it could come in handy. i would just close up the sandbox for about a week and when the kids are asking WHYYYY i'd tell them. then, when you open it back up - tell them that if they are caught dumping sand they won't be allowed back in EVER and if they see someone dumping sand they are to tell you. they won't have each other's backs so much after going a week without.

also, what about those black floor runners/grippers like you see on floors in restaurants? i bet if you put a couple of those around it that would help.

[PitterPatter]

that's when you gotta make the other kids your eyes and ears for you. If I was looking the other way and didn't see someone dump I can rest assured that soembody will tell me immediately who dumped and where......:: Tattlers come in handy once in a while! LOL!!

:: this is true but I have a DCG that will ALWAYS point to her brother blaming him, even when I know for a fact he didn't do it. And she loves him! I don't get it!

[Kaddidle Care]

Indoor/Outdoor carpeting? You know.. the kind that looks like grass? I think it might help.

[PitterPatter]

Indoor/Outdoor carpeting? You know.. the kind that looks like grass? I think it might help.

I had that last year. The only thing bad about that is the wind would blow it up and u have to keep unfolding it back down. (If u get a good wind that is) If u have a way to anchor the edges it would work tho. Mine did until I got tired of fixing it every day.