All Saints Episcopal Day School
All Saints Episcopal Day School
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Year
Design Phase: 2026
Age Group
All Ages
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A Historic Institution Embracing the Future of Outdoor Learning
Located along historic Frankford Avenue in Philadelphia, All Saints Episcopal Church has long been woven into the story of the city. The congregation itself predates the American Revolution, and the current church building—constructed in the 1800s—stands as a remarkable example of Gothic architecture, surrounded by a historic cemetery that reflects generations of community life.
For more than a century, All Saints has also been committed to education. In the early 1900s, the church established a day school program that became one of the first Montessori schools in the United States, embracing progressive educational ideas long before they became mainstream.
Today, that same spirit of innovation continues.
Continuing a Legacy of Educational Leadership
The Church’s pastor, Father Jay Walton, and the director of the day school, Heidi Weinstein, began exploring how their outdoor space could better support the learning and development of their three- to six-year-old students.
The school has always sought to stay at the forefront of early childhood education. For them, nature play represents the next step in that legacy—a way to bring cutting-edge educational practices into the heart of their historic campus.
Their vision was ambitious: create something unlike anything currently found in Philadelphia, and set an example for how outdoor environments can support children, families, and the broader community.
The project is currently in the design phase, with construction planned for 2027 as fundraising continues.
A Nature Play Space for School and Community
The church is uniquely situated beside one of the largest green spaces in the surrounding neighborhood, making it a natural gathering place for the community.
The playground design responds to this opportunity by creating a landscape that can serve both the day school and the public.
Rather than enclosing the space with traditional fencing, the design uses natural landforms and berms to create subtle boundaries that allow young children to play safely while keeping the park welcoming and accessible to the community.
Key design strategies include:
- Dedicated nature play areas for children aged 3–5, supporting imaginative play and physical development
- Landform berms and natural buffers that create protected spaces for the school without closing the park to the public
- Public-facing play features, including climbing and swinging opportunities
- A generous meadow edge and forest connection that invites exploration and interaction with the natural environment
The playscape itself is intentionally positioned along the forest edge, allowing the landscape and the natural playground to blend together—where the forest becomes part of the play experience, and the play environment gradually transitions back into nature.
A Space for Every Generation
While the project supports the needs of the day school, it was equally important that the landscape continue to serve the wider church community.
All Saints has long been a gathering place for people of all ages, and the design reflects that tradition.
The existing gazebo remains a focal point, and the landscape in front of it is reimagined as a natural amphitheater, where landforms create seating areas that face the structure. This flexible gathering space can support community events, outdoor services, performances, or informal gatherings.
The design also proposes a community garden, offering opportunities for intergenerational programming—where older community members and young children can garden, learn, and spend time together.
The goal is to create a landscape where grandparents can bring grandchildren, neighbors can gather, and the church can continue serving as a community anchor.
Setting a New Standard for Philadelphia
When completed, the All Saints nature play environment will represent a new model for outdoor learning in Philadelphia—one that honors the site’s deep history while embracing the future of early childhood education.
By blending nature play, community gathering spaces, and thoughtful landscape design, All Saints Episcopal Day School is continuing its long tradition of leading with vision and care for the next generation.
