Students and faculty were thrilled when “Predy,” a 1968 Fiat Cinquecento, returned to the playdeck this fall. Predy made her original debut at St. Hilda’s & St. Hugh’s in 2012 to celebrate the renovation of the playdeck; she was the first in a series of real vehicles that inspired imaginative journeys for children in every grade.
“It was Head of School Virginia Connor’s vision to create a physical anchor for complex play that would elicit the type of creative scenarios that every child loves, and build upon children’s innate inventiveness and playfulness,” said Lower Division Director Emily Holt.
The early childhood program at St. Hilda’s & St. Hugh’s is built on the belief that complex play is essential to learning, helping to provide a firm foundation for the development of social and emotional skills, language skills, and cognitive skills.
Over the years, teachers and staff have delighted in watching elaborate and dramatic play scenarios unfold in the evolving rotation of playdeck vehicles. After road-tripping in Predy, students sailed the high seas in a tugboat, explored the great outdoors in a teardrop camper, cruised through the sky in the cockpit of an actual jet, and sold tacos and ice cream from a food truck.