St. Peter Herald – St Peter, MN
Many St. Peter Public School and parochial school students will return to the classroom on Sept. 7 for the start of the school year with a new kind of playground.
What this new year will bring is anyone’s guess, but teachers and staff at South Elementary Early Learning Center are making an attempt to help curb at least one issue that’s come to light in recent years — the increase in the number of playground problems.
Through a program entitled, “Peaceful Playground” several staff members were busy on Thursday painting colorful designs on the asphalt surface of the playground, which were being done for more than just show. Staff members hope these new learning and game areas will help reduce incidents of bullying and rough play that have seem to be on the rise.
“When kids get into trouble, they get sent to the office on an office disciplinary referral,” South Elementary teacher Julie Carlblom said. “We’ve seen such an increase in that kind of referrals being made because of playground behavior that they account for probably 25 to 30 percent of all referrals now.”
The playground area at South is a very good area when dealing with smaller groups of children, however during recess or before school or other times larger groups of students gather out there, there isn’t always room for everyone which leads them to look elsewhere for fun which can lead to behavioral problems.
Peaceful Playground Blueprints
New learning and game areas will help reduce incidents of playground bullying.
“We got a grant last year which helped provide money for basketballs and kickballs and some other equipment that students can use if they don’t want to play on the playground equipment,” Christi Maloney, South physical education instructor and one of the Peaceful Playgrounds organizers, said. “But we still had a need to create more activities for them to do and that when we found out about the Peaceful Playground program.”
According to the Peaceful Playgrounds program’s website, “the purpose of the program is to introduce children and school staff to the many choices of activities available on playgrounds and field areas.”
Every playground blueprint is designed to help staff with measurements, layout, spacing and game placement, as well as provide an overall picture of the final design outcome of a Peaceful Playground.
The Peaceful Playgrounds program provides a low-cost avenue for K-8 schools to organize and manage their schoolyards and playgrounds. The South staff has opted for a program geared more toward pre-K through 2nd grade.
“In a time when school budgets are tapped, this program really works well in that not only is it useful but it is very cost-effective,” Maloney said.
Instead of installing new equipment, all that is needed to get involved with this program is a series of stencils, a lot of paint and the hard work and valuable time of a dedicated staff anxious to make their school a better place to learn.
Before the actual painting began, the entire playground area where this program was set up had to be power washed. Then, the staff decided on where each facet of the program would be put down on the pavement and the painting began.
The appealing aspect of getting involved with this program is that in not only offers activities for children to do during recess time, but it also can be used during physical education and other classes as well.
“It also goes really well with our SMART program,” Maloney said.
Besides Maloney and Carlblom, other South teachers and staff helping out with the project included Corrie Walters, Carri Borchert, Heidi Wenner, Nancy Sizer, and Molly Meyer along with South custodian Dave Peters.
“It was a real team effort and we’re excited to implement this program,” Maloney said. “All staff will be trained on how to use these new areas and hopefully the kids will enjoy trying something new.”
By Kurt Hildebrandt
St. Peter Herald – St Peter, MN
