Cubbies too cool for school

Once upon a time a cubby house was considered the height of luxury if it had a roof (at least that’s what my dad told me). Today, kids not only get mod-cons such as doors and windows with their cubbies, but an eco-education too.

Cool Cubbies, a project recently launched in the Northern Rivers region of NSW (and understood to be the first of its kind in Australia) involves retrofitting or building new cubby houses in community preschools so they come equipped with features such as solar panels, rainwater collectors, worm farms, weather stations and vegie gardens. 

“Apart from the physical additions to the school cubbies, we have also produced a teacher’s manual, information sheets and a children’s story book to explain simply about that big word ‘sustainability’,” says project spokeswoman Lyn Thomson (pictured, with preschoolers in Lismore).

The scheme, launched last month, is proving popular. A waiting list of preschools has sprouted and is growing. For more info, email cso@richmondlandcare.org