Protective parenting

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Originally Posted by AlyssaEimers

That would make a huge difference in my opinion. If it was an area that was open to all ages, then I would say as you were there first, you would not be expected to move just because a younger child showed up, and it would be their responsibility to keep their child safe (Although a good opportunity to teach how to play with others). If the area was clearly labeled as for children ages 3 and under (how I read your OP), then I would say if a younger child showed up, you would need to leave.

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I agree with this.

We have a play area that we like to go to called JumpStreet that has a special section marked "7 and under." It has bouncy castles and huge trampolines and whatnot. It's funny, because I often see both sides of the issue there. On one hand, at 4, T is usually NOT the biggest kid there, since he's in with 5, 6, and 7 year olds, some of whom are quite wild. In that case, I tell T to be careful and give them space, but I also expect the older kids (and their parents) to be somewhat aware of their surroundings because there are a lot of kids that are smaller than them there. I don't think that it's acceptable for big kids to just run around and knock little kids over, ever really. On the other hand, there are also kids there that are much smaller than T (some people let their just barely-wakling toddlers in there without going in with them) and that's a little nerve racking too because they really aren't able to watch out for themselves. I always tell T to watch out for the babies and be careful, and the one time he did knock one down he apologized and gave her a hug. I also agree with Deniz that part of it is just going in with an understanding that accidents happen, and unless your kid intentionally knocks someone down (or some other kid intentionally knocks your kid down) that it's just an accident and it's probably not the end of the world.