Seneca College ECE Lab School
Seneca College King Observation Lab Teaching School (KOLTS) is a stand-alone demonstration childcare facility at Seneca College’s King Campus north of Toronto. The KOLTS playground committee envisioned facilities that would include all aspects of high quality play; gross motor play, fine motor activities, the stimulation of the senses, and areas to explore emotional, creative and social interaction.
The KOLTS Master Plan is the first in a series of steps aimed at developing an outdoor environment that is nurturing, comfortable and specifically structured to meet the unique physical, emotional and developmental needs of the children at the King Observation Lab Teaching School.
The plan itself sets out a direction and process for the school and staff to upgrade, integrate and care for the existing outdoor facilities, while at the same time providing a framework for future planning as the needs of the school and the community change and grow. The playground committee can prioritize and select which options and how many, to build with each phase, contingent on the available funds and resources.
Download the KOLTS playground master plan report (8mb PDF document)
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Significant Landscape Architects and landscape architecture firms that have dedicated themselves to natural playground design and Schoolyard planning including earthartist. Natural playground designers have created distinctive natural playground and schoolyard designs across North America. Mike Salisbury of earthartist is a Landscape Architect from Guelph Ontario, Canada specializing in Natural playgrounds and outdoor classrooms for K-12 schools, communities, and childcare centres. Natural playgrounds are outdoor learning environments and outdoor classrooms, K-12, schools, community, childcare centres, early childhood education, all encourage gross motor, fine motor, cognitive, creative, social, and fantasy play. Our unique playground designs use natural features and materials to create fun, challenging, and safe natural playgrounds and outdoor classrooms. Natural play environments offer maximum and sustaining play value for far less money than manufactured playgrounds and beautify their surroundings at the same time. Natural playgrounds teach children how to re-connect with the natural environment, and to take pleasure in all that nature has to offer. Natural playgrounds can be considered part of the beautification and/or the green schools program. Living willow structures present a range of options. Our designs meet the guidelines and standards for playground safety established by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and American Standards for Testing and Materials (ASTM). Playground Safety Inspectors ensure that natural playgrounds meet or exceed accessibility standards, provide access by ramp, transfer, and groundcover systems that conform to ASTM and proposed ADA playground accessibility standards.
