St James Primary School in Kotara began Catholic Schools Week with a bang, unveiling two new play areas designed to encourage creative thinking, including a "mud kitchen" - complete with a sink and dining table.
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The playground now features a teepee, imitation creek bed, and six totem poles representing the school's values: respect, courage, justice, compassion, service and hospitality.
Acting principal Lucy Harvey thanked the school's Parents and Friends Association at the opening on Monday.
"With the Diocese implementation of the Early Learning Policy in 2017, we began the task of looking at how our environment could be used to create the best play spaces," Ms Harvey said.
"At St James we recognise the importance of self-determined play in environments that invite, enable and enrich learning and support environmental sustainability.
"Play provides opportunities for children to learn as they discover, create, improvise and imagine," she said.
"With the huge financial support, $42,000 in 2018, of our P&F we have before us the completion of stage one of the master plan."
Kim Moroney, early education learning officer at the Maitland-Newcastle Catholic Diocese, congratulated the school.
"These spaces invite open-ended interactions, spontaneity, risk-taking, exploration, discovery and connection with nature," Ms Moroney said.
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