Nature Matters

From inside the Prep classroom, wide windows frame blue skies and a beautiful, spreading shade tree. Natural light and fresh air reach every corner – which, according to research, influence the learning environment and support children’s attention and progress at school.

Classrooms with bright morning light – and that remain brightly lit through the day – have been shown to contain plenty of blue (short wavelength) light, which increases children’s alertness, improves attention, and helps them regulate their emotions. This is linked to faster academic progress and higher scores in reading and maths compared to poorly lit classrooms.

Our Prep children step straight from these bright classrooms into a dedicated Prep and Year 1 play area with sandpits, a cubby house, a fort, gardens, child-sized picnic tables, and open lawns. Picture them settling on picnic blankets for a Teddy Bears’ Picnic or running down the hill towards a large green oval where they have health and physical education classes with a specialist teacher and play on a larger ropes fort during special, supervised lunchtimes.

Some days, they go on a short walk with their teacher to a nature-play area tucked beneath the trees at the edge of campus. There, time is perfect for running with friends, clambering over logs, and taking turns on a rope swing, or wandering quietly and discovering insects and butterflies. It’s home to a family of ducks – and, at times, even a local koala. All these experiences expand the mind and heart as much as the lungs, and help children learn to cooperate and value the natural world.