Play Award

An annual award for a primary school with a learning program, class or an individual student or teacher, that has made a remarkable and ongoing contribution to ‘play in learning’ with demonstrated positive impacts. 

Award Amount: $10,000  

The Sydney Opera House has an ongoing and rich connection with play and its intrinsic connection to the arts and learning. From the inspiring stories on our stages, to the artists who enliven our Centre for Creativity, we are committed to equipping artists and audiences with the capacity and skills to embed play in their classrooms, creative and civic spaces, and everyday life.  

It is in this spirit that we continue our relationship with renowned educator Professor Pasi Sahlberg, and present the Sydney Opera House Play Award. 

This annual Award (2024–2027 inclusive) will be given to a primary-aged school, learning program, class or an individual student or teacher, who has made a remarkable and ongoing contribution to play in learning with demonstrated positive impact in the school community. 

In 2025, the Sydney Opera House Play Award winner was Berrima Primary School. NSW.

Berrima Public School’s Playgrounded philosophy infuses lessons with the power of play so that every child, regardless of their background or circumstances, has equal access to play-based learning. Inside the classroom, play is woven into many lessons. Teachers design treasure hunts where solving math problems lead to hidden clues, science labs where children can explore the properties of materials through hands-on experiments, and dramatic play that brings history to life with role-playing activities. Outside of the classroom outdoor spaces are used as living classrooms, where nature walks turn into scavenger hunts. At Berrima Public School play is recognised as the natural language through which children discover the world around them—a joyful and instinctive way of learning about the world and developing the knowledge, skills, understandings and attitudes needed to successfully navigate life. 

Berrima Public School Assistant Principal, Joanne Kennedy said, "We are honoured to receive this Award in celebration of the transformative power of play to ignite curiosity, foster creativity, and deepen children’s engagement with the world around them. This recognition of Playgrounded affirms our commitment to creating joyful, inclusive, and imaginative environments where every child can thrive.” 

Play Award Judge Kathy Hirsh-Pasek shared praise on behalf of the judging panel, “Berrima show us how public schools can seamlessly build playful learning into the fabric of their educational mission” 

Banksia Park School’s play-based learning initiative is deeply rooted in community connection, staff passion, and a shared vision to recognise the value of unstructured play in childhood development. The school’s program includes nature play sessions for students and community members with younger children, in-class breakout play areas featuring ‘small worlds’, ‘imaginative zones’ and flexible play spaces, a dedicated play room that students access weekly and which is also hosts wellbeing and social-emotional groups for therapeutic play and ‘campfire sessions’ that offer quiet moments of connection, storytelling, and reflection. At Banksia Park play has reignited motivation and engagement across the student cohort and staff collaboration has flourished. 

Preshil Margaret Little Memorial School’s play program “A Backyard for our Children” invites self-led, unprescribed outdoor play, so that children can activate their imagination, and grow their conceptual thinking, through creating their own games and scenarios. There is a forest of bamboo, trees to climb and swing from, dirt mounds to dig and hoses to create dams. Dense shrubberies to hide within, ponds to splash about with, and cubbies and huts that the children build with recycled wood and tools from the school’s outdoor workshop. Indoor spaces are also freely accessible so children can choose how and when they engage in play or in spending time to rest and recentre “A Backyard for our Children” acknowledges that play and recreation is as diverse as children, and prescribed playgrounds often preference sporting play over other styles of recreation. Differentiation in play is inclusive of all children, is open to accepting play in all its forms, is built on the premise of ownership of space, and meets the children where they are, on any given day.  

We are seeking supporters to grow the scale and ambition of the Play Award. If you are interested in donating towards this award and making play central to our lives and learning, please email Tamara Harrison, Head of Children, Families and Creative Learning.