FCSS Raymond playground a natural
Every town has its fair share of playgrounds.
Play structures with slides, swings and the like are pretty common, but often limit the type of play youngsters are engaged in.
“There’s not a lot of room for openended play,” said Family and Community Support Services Family Services manager Petra DeBow.
In Raymond, FCSS has built a natural playground on the south end of Raymond Elementary School to get kids thinking differently about outdoor play.
“With a natural space, kids can really use their imaginations,” said DeBow.
The outdoor play space includes a gigantic boulder as the centrepiece, a boulder that measures eight feet across, four feet wide and four feet high. Several smaller boulders are spaced to allow children to leap from boulder to boulder.
“This is brand new for Raymond,” said Myrna Sopal, FCSS Family Support Worker, who added the concept for the play space was modelled after the facility in Coaldale.
Aside from the boulders, the salad and salsa garden, which boasts tomatoes, onions, lettuce, peppers and cucumbers, is another unique feature, along with the herb garden.
Apple and pear trees, and an abundance of berry plants, round out the edible aspects of the play space.
An outdoor play kitchen, water table and tires of different sizes are just a few of the other highlights of the space, which Sopal added will help kids get back to their roots.
“It’s all about going back to childhood and experiencing nature to its fullest by doing things like climbing on rocks and getting their hands dirty, all in a safe space.”
That safety factor is key but according to Sopal, the space is also all about allowing youngsters to test themselves in a variety of ways.
“When children have the opportunity to go outdoors and play on rocks and logs, they are learning their own
limits,” said Sopal. “They’re developing their balance, working on their gross motor skills and learning about texture, all while being out in the sunshine. To be able to go outside and be in a safe space that is fenced is nice, and that allows parents to talk to each other as well.”
For FCSS, the new play area will provide opportunities to take regular programming outdoors and allow staff to experiment with the wide variety of foods being grown in the space.
The facility would not have been possible without the help of many in the community, according to DeBow, who praised Westwind School Division for allowing the space to be built on their property, along with supplying labourers for its construction. The Raymond Wellness Coalition donated funds to the project and the outdoor kitchen and water table were donated by the Westwind Early Years Coalition.
In the future, Sopal added she would like to add a gazebo and a place for outdoor crafts, to protect children from wind and rain.
The outdoor play space opened to the public earlier this week, but an official grand opening will take place Sept. 11 between 5-7 p.m.
“Families are welcome to come and play even if the gates are closed,” said Sopal, who added the play space is available whenever youngsters want to stop by and use the facility.