Middlebrook Students to Fundraise for Outdoor Activity Park

Middlebrook PTA is organizing a student-led wrapping paper and gift sales fundraiser in the hopes to fund an outdoor activity park (age-appropriate play space and equipment) for students to use at recess. It’s a need that students helped identify when they told parents and teachers that there really wasn’t much that kept them engaged at recess.

“Last year, we’d been hearing this from our own kids and from other moms. And when our older children came through here [a few years ago], there was nothing to do at recess,” explains Middlebrook PTA president Savet Constantine. She’s working on the project along with fundraising chair Laura Kirkpatrick and PTA vice president Pam Hickey.

The parents were eager to explore the idea, knowing that research supports the idea of outside play helping kids that age stay active, maintain a healthy lifestyle and get focused for afternoon classes.

“The current philosophy has seen a sea change–it’s standard now as newer middle schools are built today with these kinds of activity parks, something that wasn’t included when Middlebrook was built because the thinking was different then,” Constantine says.

MB principal Maria Coleman suggested getting the student government involved to identify what needs the kids had.

“We asked the kids what they do at recess, and 90-percent of them said they don’t even go outside,” Hickey says. “As parents that concerned us. We want people to go out. We asked them what would be ideal. They said, ‘To have something fun, to climb on. But before that, just give us the basics. Give me a soccer ball, a football.’ Maria met with her [physical education] staff and they made up a list. When spring came we came bought them a whole bunch of stuff. My son now plays football every day.”

Coleman has helped ensure that there are staff members available to escort children safely across the back parking lot to the fields for ball play. But still something was missing.

“Step two is we have this 40-ft. by 60-ft. space out there, that is unused. No one plays there because it’s usually a little wet, but with the project we’ll grade it and use wood chips and it becomes usable space,” Hickey says. That’s the spot (pictured above) that they’ve targeted as the location for the activity park.

Getting input from the kids was crucial. “They don’t want a playground with swings and slides. This is more of an age-appropriate obstacle course, using upper body space, that they have to navigate. It’s not enough just to give them time to play, sometimes they need help thinking of what to do,” Constantine says.

They say it will serve a lot of purposes, both physical and social:

“It gives a kid who doesn’t have a group of people to go out with, an area to go to, to connect with other people. It also gives them a challenge, with each of the obstacles,” Hickey says.

Adds Constantine, “When you have a limited amount of time, to go from lunch and then run out to recess, sometimes by the time you get a game organized, get the teams, get a ball, recess is over. This is something that you can run out to, burn off some energy, there’s no time wasted trying to figure anything out. Just to give the kids a reason to get out there without having to think about it.”

With the fundraising, the PTA is looking forward to getting the kids engaged in the entire process, by helping them see exactly what they’re fundraising for. “We’re asking the kids to reach out [to sell] to family, and to friends and neighbors. We’re hoping that the kids realize that this is for them to have fun. This way they’ll understand when they ask people if there’s anything they want to buy. They’ll see what the end result will be,” Constantine explains.

In addition to some contests and prize incentives they’ve built in to encouraging the students’ participation, they’re resurrecting a Middlebrook tradition, something that may sound quirky to outsiders:  “We’re bringing back the pig races,” Constantine laughs.

Pig races? Really?

“Once each team gets 75-percent participation in each class, each classroom gets their own pig–a small, mechanical battery-operated pig that each class, color and grade can race. The ultimate team-base pig race winner will get to donate $150 to the team’s charity. It’s something to spark interest and we’re working at multiple levels,” Constantine explains, referring to the school’s established practice of having students support charitable efforts as part of their community action.

“They have their own personal interest–the activity play structure–and they have a class interest as well, that supports the community too.”

One other way they’ll look to get the kids involved is in picking a name for the space, especially to help make the distinction that it’s not a ‘playground,’ which has a much younger connotation. “We’re thinking of holding a contest to name the space.”

The target number organizers want to raise is $40,000, which would cover the equipment, landscaping and professional installation. Ideally, they hope that they’ll be able to have the park built by spring, but it’s all dependent on how well fundraising goes. “Cider Mill PTA typically sees 93 to 94 percent participation; here, we have only 38 percent. If we can increase participation–$40 per child–and get parents to see that the benefit will help their children and all the children after them,” Hickey says.

Constantine said the idea has the support of the town, including Parks and Recreation, as well as the schools. It’s also something that will be a resource for the whole town, just like the playgrounds at all other town-owned school properties. Especially because Middlebrook is a location used for other events–town meetings, sports practice, voting–PTA officials see it as a place that will offer a lot outside of school hours as well.

Organizers hope that community members without direct ties to the school will help support the effort in return, even if they don’t know a Middlebrook student personally. “We’ll be reaching out to fifth grade students next week. They will be the first class that will fully benefit from having a play space here. Even if they bought one or two rolls of wrapping paper, it helps,” says Constantine, who adds that anyone can go to the fundraising website and enter the school code of 101532, and select Middlebrook to shop and benefit the school.