“When the children are happy, everyone benefits.” Monocle
Playgrounds
This project began with a question: could public space become a site for computer science learning? Ruoholahti is one answer, but just the first. Instead of screens or syntax, it invites exploration through wood, movement, and joy. I believe playgrounds can become spaces for learning by expanding the ways we enter it.
To learn more, send a message to playgrounds@helloruby.com.
Ruoholahti
Helsinki, Finland — 2023
A Computer You Can Climb
What if a playground could teach us about our digital lives? The Ruoholahti Computer Playground turns the invisible world of computing into physical play
The playground invites small bodies to explore big ideas—algorithms, conditionals, functions—without needing a screen or even knowing the words. It’s computing as storytelling, architecture, and play.
In an age where children spend more time on screens than under trees, we need places that bridge the digital and physical. The Ruoholahti Computer Playground is not a nostalgic retreat from technology—it’s a new kind of literacy space. One that says: play is not the opposite of learning. It is learning.
As Seen On
“The world's first coding playground.” BBC
"Brilliantly bizarre!" Wallpaper*
“Helsinki dared to build a playground that isn’t only about safety.” Helsingin Sanomat
The Design
.The entire space is an invitation—not just to play, but to think with your whole body.
The DNA of this project includes: Seymour Papert’s constructivism, John Maeda’s Human Powered Computer, Taeyoon Choi’s CPU Dumplings, Alexandra Lange’s playful urbanism, Florentijn Hofman’s large-scale creatures, The Reggio Emilia and Montessori traditions and the quiet genius of Monstrum playgrounds themselves.
We created a curriculum alongside the playground, designed for teachers and educators visiting the site.
Team
The project was created with the City of Helsinki, Landscape Architects Näkymä and Monstrum, designed with local educators. It’s part of a broader movement to rethink public space as a site for learning.
A Playground Worth a Thousand Programmes
A talk I gave for a programmer audience at beyond tellerand on how playgrounds ⫶ 2025 ⫶ 40 minutes
Project notes
- No. 21 – Playgrounds 🤖 Public Spaces 📐 Architects for the very young (25 Aug 2021)
- No. 22 — Paris 🇫🇷🗼 Pattern Language 🏙️ Kid City (1 Sep 2021)
- No. 36 — Play/Pause ⏯️ My phone stuck its tongue out 😝 Wingspan (15 Mar 2022)
- No. 65 – Playground abacus ⫶ Stochastic Parrot ⫶ Parallel Computing in the Ancient World (10 Dec 2023)
- No. 76 — Playground construction ⫶ Worldbuilding ⫶ Jean Bartik (20 May 2024)
- No. 78 – Umarell : Star Stuff : A tinkering bibliography (15 Jun 2024)
- No. 80 – Booleans : Primeval numbers : Incomplete City (10 Jul 2024)
- No. 85 — Playing in the streets ⫶ Pop-up computing ⫶ Shelf space (5 Oct 2024)
- No. 86 — A playground to outlast the feed (25 Oct 2024)
- No. 87 — Playground process ⫶ The Anchor Song ⫶ Berlin next week (5 Nov 2024)
- No. 89 — A Playground Worth a Thousand Programmes (20 Nov 2024)
- No. 94 — Hopscotch ⫶ Nassi-Shneiderman (15 Jan 2025)