Arms bolted skyward early Wednesday when a group of young students was asked how many of them like to be outside, run around, and dig in the dirt.
The kids at the Valeska Hinton Early Childhood Education Center on Peoria’s South Side soon will have that opportunity on a regular basis as the school develops a new nature-based play and learning space.
“In early childhood, kids experiment through play. They have an opportunity to discover and work together, learn their social-emotional skills with one another,” principal Katie Cobb said during a groundbreaking event for the outdoor learning space. “It aligns completely with our curriculum that we’re using within the classrooms.”
Development of the outdoor area is possible through a partnership with PNC Bank as part of its ongoing “Grow Up Great” nationwide initiative.
“We understand that early childhood education is so far behind in this country, and that’s why we’ve chosen as a company to invest our money into that,” said Brian Ray, PNC’s regional president for Central Illinois. “This has been a 20 year initiative; we’ve invested over $500 million in local communities to do this.”
Ray said PNC’s Peoria market allocated $70,000 for investing in the community, and decided the outdoor space at Valeska Hinton was a worthy cause.
“I have three children that are grown now, but I live just up the hill. I get to drive by this school every day and see the kids out here every day,” he said. “Knowing that we were able to put some money into the community in this area, and literally watch that every day as I come to and from work, is really special.”
Peoria Public Schools Superintendent Sharon Kherat said the outdoor space exemplifies the district’s vision for reimagining education to enhance students’ passion and interest.
“I love the focus, the theme about ‘Growing Up Great,’ and that’s what they’re doing here at Valeska Hinton,” Kherat said of PNC’s assistance. “This is what this outdoor classroom will also provide, that opportunity to make it a lot easier, more beautiful.
“I love raising the hand for being outside, yes, playing in the dirt, yes, running around, yes, problem solving, yes, being kind to each other. You learn all of that here.”
The children got a first taste of playing in the dirt as they had the opportunity to join the adults in shoveling ground aside during Wednesday’s ceremony.
“We try to introduce hands-on skills,” said Cobb when asked what kind of educational opportunities the outdoor space will allow. “So they will be able to dig into the dirt and discover different things. They will be able to create projects with natural pieces, such as wood, flowers, trees, and kind of discover the arts as well.
“When you notice that kids are really interested in water, per se, they can discover the water, create ramps and discover how they can make the water flow together, what happens when you have the water and then you add the dirt together. It’s just great opportunities to find what kids are interested in and how to build on top of that.”
Cobb said the outdoor learning area will be constructed in phases, with the hope of having the first phase completed by the end of the month.
“I think that it’ll be ever-growing, right? So, as you’re developing in different areas you want to as you see that kids enjoy a certain area or a certain landscape, then you might want to enrich it more,” she said. “So I think that it will be continually growing and we hope that as it’s successful, then we can do more.”
