Nature Playground First of its Kind Associated with a Public School in Illinois
Tuesday – September 27th, 2022
Chicago, IL – The Illinois Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects hosted its annual showcase “Celebration +” highlighting outstanding landscape architecture projects on Thursday, September 22nd. TERRA Engineering, Ltd.’s Landscape Architecture department was recognized for its recently completed River Trails Nature Playground, a unique and innovative project adjacent to the newly renovated and net-zero River Trails Elementary School, a first for a nature playground associated with a public school in Illinois. TERRA served as the project manager for the Landscape Architecture portion of the project.
With the vision to create a sustainable and integrated learning environment, TERRA helped transform the Prairie Trails Early Learning Center into a creative and engaging nature playground that extends learning outdoors. From the outset of the project, TERRA’s team of landscape architects worked closely with the school administrators, teachers, and maintenance staff to create a space that would reintroduce children to the joys and possibilities of the natural world.
The design combined multiple areas of the school curriculum to foster creativity and to learn in unexpected environments using instruments, manipulation, and exploration. With open-ended learning environments, the joys of making mud pies in the outdoor kitchen, becoming frogs on the log steppers, or hiding in fairy houses on the hill, demonstrate the endless opportunities. The intent of this new playground aims to become more than a ‘recess’ area, but an active contributor to early childhood education.
Due to its award of an environmental grant, the school was renovated to become the nation’s first net-zero building that also meets the Passive House Institute US standard. In doing so, the building reduces energy by 40-60% compared to a conventional school. It is also one of the first nature playgrounds associated with a public school in Illinois. The holistic, environmentally-focused site renovation includes:
Stormwater is routed through a naturalized wetland detention basin reducing contamination to the adjacent creek
Conversion of the asphalt parking lots to permeable pavers, reducing stormwater runoff
Protection of the existing greenspace - a floodway rated for 1 in a 100-year storm event
Use of non-toxic, natural playground materials from sustainably sourced cedar from the USA
Use of locally sourced limestone outcropping stones as play features
Improvement of local ecology with native planting and butterfly exploration garden
Maintaining existing trees to provide shade and habitat.
For More Information
Lynn Kessen
Director of Marketing & Strategic Planning
Phone: 312.467.0123
Email: lkessen@terraengineering.com