A new nature playground has been installed on the grounds of St Thomas More Primary School thanks to the dedication and vision of a group of parents.
According to Year One teacher Abbey Halse, the partnership between the school and the parents to create the ‘Naturescape’ was an impressive community effort.
“All of the time and items put into the playground area were donated by the parents, with some items donated by local businesses,” Ms Halse said. “It is a fantastic spot for the younger students to have a secure, creative space to play that is a little bit away from the older kids.”
The space calls on popular nature play education principles, using naturally occurring items such as tree branches and rocks in combination with recycled household items.
“A group of Year One parents banded together to create this, and with the help of our school groundskeeper we were able to get the bush area cleared to make it safe for play.”
The area was then filled with nature-based structures like teepees and log walks, and a few fun additions were installed, such as the hanging pots and pans.
“I love it, it’s so much fun and you can make heaps of different things with all the stuff that’s in the playground,” said Year One student Leon, who had a chance to try out the space before the official opening.
Ms Halse said she was excited to see how the area would develop over time. “With the kids creating and building the space will constantly change and grow, so it’s an exciting new element to the grounds.”