So as the wet winter weather arrived in Port Chalmers this week, St Joseph's School opened its new indoor playground in the school's basement, so pupils can burn off all that extra energy without going outside.
"Most schools are in an exposed environment, and the moment the weather turns, it's unpleasant for children to be outside playing," principal Tom Woodhouse said.
The school building was built in the 1980s, and the intention at the time was to build an indoor playground in the basement, he said.
"But it never eventuated because it got snaffled up as a storage area very quickly for spare desks and chairs and donations for school fairs and things like that."
Earlier this year, Mr Woodhouse decided to clear out the space and during term 1, pupils started designing an indoor playground as part of a classroom technology unit.
The result was a $6000 playground which had safety matting, a large slide, a climbing wall and monkey bars.
"They had input into what would be in there.
"Some of their ideas didn't eventuate - like the tunnel from the classroom upstairs going down into the basement.
"The kids love it. It has a novelty factor because it's still new to them."
Despite it being a fun environment for the children, the facility was having a major impact on their education, he said.
"Children have a lot of energy, and if they are stuck in a classroom over a lunch break on a wet day, it's difficult to burn that energy off.
"That makes learning harder for them later in the day. They get restless.
"So this is actually helping their learning."
