Children at the Singleton Heights Preschool are enjoying their safer outdoor learning space, thanks to a $7,000 donation from Yancoal Australia’s Mount Thorley Warkworth (MTW) operation.
The funding enabled the resurfacing of the concrete that surrounds the sandpit with a high-quality non-slip material which has improved safety for all the children, especially when there is sand or water on the ground.
Neisha Dean, Director of the Singleton Heights Preschool was pleased with the safety improvement to the outdoor play area.
“We are passionate and committed to children exploring and investigating outside from a learning outcome perspective and safety is a key priority.
“As educators we know that a sandpit is more than just for playing, it encourages children to practice sharing, cooperation, and negotiation. It helps develop their physical skills such as digging, moulding, pouring and gets them thinking from an engineering perspective to make tunnels, dams, sculptures and exploring mass, length, and volume.
“In order for our children to engage in all these important learning activities, we need the area to be safe to avoid any falls or accidents. This new slip resistant flooring is great as it provides a safe, robust and comfortable playing surface for our children.
“We pride ourselves on offering a quality, creative and challenging educational program for the children in our community, employing expert educators.
“We are thankful to Mount Thorley Warkworth for the funding to keep improving our educational facility,” said Neisha.
Singleton Heights Preschool has been operating for 38 years and is a community owned and volunteer managed, non-for-profit preschool that teaches 80 children per day, aged three to six years old.
Mount Thorley Warkworth General Manager Cris Shadbolt was pleased to help fund the upgrade at the preschool.
“Educating the children in our region is vital and Singleton Heights Preschool deserves the best and high-quality equipment and facilities.
“We are happy our funding could upgrade the sandpit outdoor space, it will make a positive difference to the children and families in our community for many years to come,” said Cris.
