Funding for the play areas has come from the Scottish Government, whichhas provided 815,000 to enhance and support early yearsprovision.
The Scottish Government has also initiated an outdoor learningdevelopment programme called Outdoor Connections, which aims to developand distribute resources to improve the quality of outdoor learningacross Scotland and make connections between children's outdoor andindoor learning experiences.
Heather Hamilton, head of Education, Learning and Leisure atAberdeenshire local authority, said, 'We hope to develop as many of theoutdoor areas in place over the next academic year as possible. We wantto make sure we maximise learning potential, so we are looking forthings like sustainability, health and well-being.
'The areas will have multiple purposes and we are keen to encourageusage from playgroups and for staff training.'
The new outdoor places are to be used to develop good practice whichwill be shared with all nursery schools and pre-school learning centresacross Aberdeenshire.
Moira Lawson, headteacher of Alehousewell Primary school, one of thesettings set to benefit from the scheme, said, 'We're absolutelythrilled. We make the most of our playground but we don't currently havea dedicated space where we can focus on all of the learning outcomes. Itwill provide so many learning opportunities for children. The staff andparents are also very excited.'