We have been running, playing, and making memories on our current Early Childhood playground since 2004 when our main administration and lower school building was opened. The design has served us well and now, 18 years later, playground design and purpose has evolved, just as we have evolved as a school.
This is the second phase of a community effort to improve our playground spaces at St. Mark’s. We successfully campaigned in 2019, raising over $490,000 to improve and renovate our largest playground and artificial turf field. We planned to improve the Early Childhood playground the next year in 2020, and due to COVID, we had to delay this process. Now, we have an opportunity to imagine a whole new landscape for outdoor play at St. Mark’s for our youngest students.
Why Does Play Matter?
When our children go outside, it is not just recess. Outdoor play is an active form of learning that unites the mind, body, and spirit. When permitted to play freely with peers, children develop skills for seeing things through another person’s point of view--cooperating, helping, sharing, and solving problems. Outdoor learning engages all the senses: smell, touch, and taste, which are all powerful modes of learning. Children develop their motor planning skills and strength, and have fun while being challenged physically.
Who Will Use this Playground?
St. Mark’s recognizes the importance of outdoor play, which is why we devote a lot of time to it in our planning and scheduling as a school. All students at St. Mark’s have dedicated outdoor play time each day, and Preschool 3s through 1st grade students go outside twice a day. The Primary School Playground is used by our youngest students on campus, ages 18 months through Pre-K.
Watch a Video Explaining our Project
At the 2022 Gala, we announced our playground project by showing this video.
Play in Progress!
Come back soon to see progress photos!
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