This is a sign commonly seen around schools.

Problem:
Punctuation is missing.

Explanation:
Whoever first designed this sign did not convert the pause that he heard in his head into punctuation that would express this pause.

This sign is shorthand for “Please slow down or continue to drive slowly because there are children playing in this area.”

Some traffic signs are in the form of an imperative but without the exclamation mark that imperatives traditionally require:

• “STOP” — for “Stop!” or “Stop Your Car!”
• “YIELD” — for “Yield!” or “Yield to Other Drivers!”
• “CAUTION” — for “Caution!” or “Take Caution!”

The “SLOW” in “SLOW CHILDREN AT PLAY” is short for “Slow Down!” or “Drive Slowly!” and absolutely requires punctuation before “CHILDREN AT PLAY” unless the sign maker wanted to say that the children near where the sign was to be placed were slow.

In other words, “SLOW CHILDREN AT PLAY” was meant to carry two thoughts:

• “SLOW DOWN!” or “DRIVE SLOWLY!”
• “CHILDREN AT PLAY!”

This gives us the solutions.

Solutions:
“SLOW DOWN! CHILDREN AT PLAY”
or
“DRIVE SLOWLY! CHILDREN AT PLAY”