Phase 1: What parents can do on their own

Your school board approval process, and applicable deadlines, will structure your project. Understanding how this all works is critical as you begin the planning phase of any new project.

The key to forming your team is to determine who the stakeholders are. PAC members, parents, students, teachers, school administration, and community members – all of these individuals have a stake in what the school yard looks like and the ways it can be used. Make sure to organize a team that ensures every voice can be heard and taken into consideration.

What do you hope to achieve? Do you need to design a new playground, a new outdoor education space, or simply add some new pieces of play equipment? Are there constraints? This section will guide you through how you can work with this set of goals and constraints to achieve the best possible result.

Fundraising is a critical component of any new school project, and will help turn your project dreams into reality. The scale of the project you’re undertaking will determine your need for funds – let us guide you through the fundraising process.

It’s time to get educated and inspired. Browse through our library of exciting precedent projects and read literature on what makes for an amazing playground or outdoor classroom. Create a digital or physical space to gather images, sketches, and different pieces of inspiration.

Delve into getting to know the specifics of your school. What makes it unique, and what types of designs work well with your school? You will be guided through how to examine the topography of your school site, and understanding the relationship of your school to the surrounding community.

How can you apply your inspiration, knowledge and ideas to your own school project? Hold design workshops with community members and students. Start to think about how to create spaces on the school ground for play and education, and how these spaces will relate to each other.

Use this handy checklist to produce a document outlining the scope of the design you’re planning to undertake. Take a look through the flowchart to determine whether or not you need to hire a design professional.