By Brady Lang

New Natural Play Space set to open in North Battleford

Aug 24, 2018 | 9:00 AM

Children in the Battlefords will soon have a new place to play.

The City of North Battleford and the Battlefords Early Childhood Intervention Program have partnered together to build a natural play space. The new space provides a natural feel, with rocks and different play surfaces aimed at encouraging imagination and connecting children to nature. Colleen Sabraw, executive director with the Battlefords Early Childhood Intervention Program told battlefordsNOW the fundamentals of the project.

“It’s really about getting kids back to the basics,” she said. “Letting them use their creativity, their imagination, and every time they go to that space, it’s a new adventure. It will be a space that’s utilized all year round. Lots of kids will have lots of opportunities to engage and play in the space.”

The project is being built as part of celebrations for the BECIP’s 35th anniversary. The new natural play space will be located behind the Civic Centre, close to the splash park. Construction began earlier this week and will officially open with a ceremony on September 14th. BECIP spent $50,000 in creating the space, with the City matching that total. The space gives children the opportunity to explore different types of textures such as pathways, sand, grass and mulch.

Sabraw believes that kids spend too much time inside, and says the play space will give them the opportunity to experience something that they’ve never seen before, especially in the province of Saskatchewan.

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“It’s bringing a different way to look at play,” she said. “I’m hoping that with creativity kids will find lots and lots of opportunities to get them back to the basics and playing on a variety of things that are in our natural world. Their motor skill development, their creativity and imagination is very important for children.”

Playing outside gives them the thought process of what their next move will be, improving many skills and enhancing their ability to think in the outside world, Sabraw added.

“There’s risky play involved,” she said. “They’re going to learn those skills. Asking how to get on top of those big rocks, like ‘will my buddy help me get up there’, ‘will I have to climb up there’, ‘will climb up it then bring me up there’. It’s a different way to look at parks in a much more natural setting.”

brady.lang@jpbg.ca

Twitter: @BradyLangCJNB