Playground Capital Campaign

“Grown-ups think of play as a purposeless occupation that keeps children happy and out of mischief, but actually when children are left to play by themselves very little of their activity is purposeless. ”

~ Maria Montessori (Maria Montessori Speaks to Parents, p. 31)

The indoor Montessori classroom environment is made up of beautiful, carefully chosen materials, often made of natural materials and simple in design. The outdoor environment should be much the same, but provide more space for free movement to support a child’s physical development.

We have 100 acres of woods where older children enjoy creative free play, building forts in a “town” they’ve endearingly named “Mudville.” Adjacent to the woods is our playground, which has served us well over the years, but has reached the end of its lifecycle. As parts of the playground have deteriorated, we have had to remove those pieces, leaving our students with fewer opportunities to climb, swing, and slide together. A new playground, with elements chosen by our trained Montessori faculty, is ready to be installed, but we need your help.

We are raising funds to remove our old playground structures and install a beautiful new playground that will not only provide what our students need during the school day, but will also serve as a space for families from our school and the larger community to use after school hours. Many families come to hike around the pond, for playdates, or to use the playground while soccer or other community events take place on the Northfield Park field, basketball court or pavilion. Our new playground will provide play structures that meet the needs of the school and the wider community.

Aligned with Litchfield Montessori’s mission and philosophy, the new playground has been designed to encourage independence, support the child’s sense of wonder, and foster opportunities for free movement as well as social interaction.

With your help, our children will have an outdoor environment that extends the beauty within our school’s walls to the structures on our playground.