tiisai ko ha sunaba yori suberidai no hou ga suki rasii.

Because 小さい is an i-adjective.

• i-adjectives directly modify nouns:
  • 小さい子 = small/young child
• na-adjectives need な before a noun:
  • 静かな子 = quiet child

So 小さい子 is the normal form.

It can suggest more than one of those ideas, depending on context.

• Literally, 小さい means small
• But with 子, it very often means young child
• Japanese nouns do not usually mark singular vs. plural, so 子 can mean:
  • a child
  • children

In this sentence, because 子は is being used as a general topic, it most naturally sounds like small/young children in general.

They are doing different jobs.

• 小さい子は sets the topic: as for small children
• 滑り台のほうが marks what is being identified as the preferred item

So the structure is roughly:

• As for small children, the slide is more liked than the sandbox.

This is very common in Japanese:

• A は B が 好き
• A は X より Y のほうが 好き

Here, は gives the larger frame, and が marks the item that fits the description inside that frame.

This is the standard comparison pattern:

• X より Y のほうが ...
• Y is more ... than X

So here:

• 砂場より = than the sandbox
• 滑り台のほうが = the slide, rather / the slide side

A very literal breakdown is:

• Compared with the sandbox, the slide side is more liked

In natural English, that becomes something like children seem to like the slide more than the sandbox.

Because ほう is a noun, and the noun before it modifies it with の.

• 滑り台のほう = the slide side / the slide option

Think of ほう as meaning side, direction, or option.

A few useful comparisons:

• 滑り台のほう = noun + の
  • ほう
• 静かなほう = na-adjective + な
  • ほう
• 早いほう = i-adjective + ほう
• 歩くほう = verb + ほう

So the form changes depending on what comes before ほう.

Because 好き is not a regular action verb like eat or read. It behaves more like an adjective.

• 好き means liked or pleasing, and by extension to like
• The thing that is liked is usually marked with が, not を

So:

• 滑り台のほうが好き = the slide is liked more → (they) like the slide more

This is why が appears here.

For learners, the safest rule is:

• with 好き, use が
• not を

Here, らしい means something like:

• apparently
• it seems
• I hear that

It shows that the speaker is not stating it as a firm, directly confirmed fact.

So 好きらしい means:

• apparently (they) like it
• it seems that (they) like it

This sentence therefore has a slightly indirect or uncertain tone.

No, not in this sentence.

らしい has more than one use:

1. seems / apparently / I hear

   • used here: 好きらしい

2. typical of / characteristic of

   • example: 子どもらしい = childlike / typical of a child

In 好きらしい, it is the first meaning: apparently / it seems.

These are similar, but not identical.

• 好きらしい

  • apparently / it seems
  • often based on indirect information, general impression, or inference

• 好きだそうだ

  • I heard that ... like it
  • more clearly a report of what someone said

• 好きそうだ

  • looks like ... likes it
  • based more on appearance or visible signs

So:

• 好きらしい = somewhat broad, indirect
• 好きだそうだ = explicit hearsay
• 好きそうだ = visual impression

Yes. Japanese nouns usually do not show number by themselves.

So:

• 砂場 can mean the sandbox or sandboxes
• 滑り台 can mean the slide or slides

In this sentence, they are probably being used as general categories, not as one specific sandbox and one specific slide.

That is why English often translates them naturally as either singular or plural depending on style.

No. Standard Japanese is usually written without spaces between words.

This sentence would normally be written as:

小さい子は砂場より滑り台のほうが好きらしい。

The spaced version is just a learning aid to make the parts easier to see.