I have a monkey in my house. Based on a recent Instagram poll, 73% of you do, too (over 1,500 of you responded!).

There is some comfort in knowing I’m not alone in this- but the constant counter climbing left me turning to you for advice!

How do I offer my child more (safe) climbing-like activities at home to fill this love/need for climbing any and everything? And boy, did you come through!

We tallied your hundreds of ideas and combined them here for you, presented in order from more votes to less votes. Each product listed here was endorsed at least three times, many of them endorsed many times by ADHD families just like yours. These were the top recommendations for kids with ADHD who love to climb:

Note: The Childhood Collective is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases, at no cost to you! 

1. Play Couches/Foam Blocks – This was the most common recommendation! Many of you mentioned name brands such as The Nugget Couch and Foamnasium. Build them into forts, build them into climbing walls, use them as obstacle courses… the possibilities are endless!
2. Rock Wall or Ninja Climbing Tree – While I was looking for options “short of putting in a rock wall”… so many of you said “just install the rock wall – you won’t regret it!”. One of you said to Google “Ninja Climbing Tree” and this looks like a great compromise between a rock wall and tree climbing (which several of you also mentioned – fair enough!).
3. Pikler/Arch Climber – Lots and lots of you enthusiastically endorsed a Pikler. There are so many options out there – while we don’t have one of these in our own homes, some of you mentioned this particular brand. There are so many possibilities here!
4. Doorway Swings & More – Swing, trapeze bar, pull up bar, hanging rope, aerial silk… there are some fancy options all within a simple doorway set-up. We love that these don’t take up much space, but have lots of different options depending on what your kid is feeling that day.
5. Gymnastics Bar – Here’s another recommendation that we can wholeheartedly endorse, as some of us have these in our own homes. Gymnast or not, these bars are great for hanging (right-side-up or upside-down), pulling up, and so much more!
6. Climbing Dome – I have to admit, we have looked into these so many times for our kids but the AZ heat has me a little worried – will it be too hot to touch half the year? Will the sun destroy it (like it does everything else in the desert)? For those reasons, we haven’t bought one but I am super tempted because I know my kids would love it. If you’ve got the right climate and the space, maybe this option is for you!
7. Trampoline – With the disclaimer that it’s not necessarily a “climbing” activity, many of you endorsed a trampoline for your ADHDer! We love that this is a relatively compact option.
8. Small Slide – Several of you said that even your “bigger” kids (6-8years) still love to climb up and down their small slide (the ladder and the slide side)! This one is a price-friendlier option.
9. Swedish Ladder – Now this is the option that had me running to Google for my kids. It’s another option that seems to have lots of possibilities for use indoors, which we really need during the hot AZ summers… *adds to cart*
10. Slackline Ninja Course – If you’ve got the proper space for set-up, this looks like an ADHDers dream – it’s got a little bit of everything! Wonder if you can hang one of these from cactus to cactus – kidding 😉

We love polling you all so much – thanks for sharing a bit of your world with us! You have great insights as we are all navigating this ADHD parenting journey… and supporting kids with ADHD who LOVE to climb. We’re in this together!

All the love,

Lori, Katie, and Mallory

We put this list together just for fun. This post has affiliate links, meaning we may receive a commission if you purchase using these links.