visits – Page 13 – Hecklegirth Nursery

Fiddle Fun

As part of our learning about Scottish culture, the afternoon children were invited to Primary 2/1’s classroom last week to learn about the fiddle. Mrs. Roberts told us about the different parts of it and how the sound comes out of it. She played us several Scottish tunes and then gave us a big surprise when she played a tune that we know. We all joined in with “Ye Cannae Shove Yer Granny Aff a Bus” then we managed to record it and listen back on to our singing on the computer which was great fun. If you turn up your volume and click on the link below you can hear the children singing along to Mrs. Roberts playing the fiddle.

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Mrs. Roberts even helped some children hold the little fiddle and they were able to make some sounds with it. Maybe one day they will be able to play like Mrs. Roberts.

Thank you so much to Mrs. Roberts as well as Miss Cameron and Primary 2/1. We really enjoyed our visit to your classroom. Hopefully the morning children will be able to enjoy this experience with Primary 1 later in the week.

Visit to the Romans

Today we all had great fun visiting Primary 4 who showed us their work on the Romans. The life size figures of Roman soldiers were particularly impressive and we really enjoyed trying out the computer games that Primary 4 had designed. We saw mosaics and amphitheatre models and heard stories about life as a Roman soldier, amongst other things.

Primary 4 were so enthusiastic at sharing their learning with Nursery children, making sure that they explained things to them in a way that they would understand. Thank you very much to Miss Cameron and everyone in Primary 4 for making us feel so welcome. We always love our visits to your classroom.

Learning Circus Skills

Although we have been having great fun with our own circus area in Nursery, the morning children had a real life experience of the circus this week when we were invited to visit the big top which was in the field next to us. Several of the circus acts welcomed us and kindly took lots of time and patience to teach us a few basic skills. Peppa Pig even made an appearance and joined in a dance with everyone as they waited their turn to try out the juggling clubs and hoops. The acrobat’s trampoline was also a great attraction as the children all tried to bounce as high as the circus girl. It was a fantastic experience for the children to meet real circus performers and we thank them for spending so much time with us. The children are continuing to practise their skills in Hecklegirth Circus.

We learned to spin the hoops on our arms.

More Maryport Adventures

As promised, Stan the Star took the afternoon children to Maryport for a visit last week. Unfortunately the weather was not so kind to us this time so we didn’t have the opportunity to enjoy the adventure park. Poor Stan the Star had to poke his little nose out of the bag to see what was happening as he might have been blown away by the wind and rain if he had ventured out.

However, we were very lucky to arrive just as a fishing boat was landing its catch and everyone had close-up view of a variety of fish before they were sent off to be sold. Poor Miss Kerr had smelly hands after holding the different types of fish so that we could get a closer look. She didn’t even mind the big wriggly prawns that some of us found a little scary so thank you Miss Kerr for being so brave. We were also amazed how closely the seagulls came to us as they tried to clear the nets of little bits of star fish left behind and the fishermen waving to us, as they left the harbour to go out on the choppy sea, made our day.

The aquarium, as previously, was a fantastic experience and the children were particularly excited to touch and hold the rays, star fish and crabs. Again, Stan the Star had some nervous moments as he was dangled over the ray pool but he survived the ordeal, despite one or two of the baby sharks coming to have a close look at him.

We would like to thank all the parents who helped us on our trips: without your support they would not have been possible. We also feel very proud of our children who behaved so well on both occasions. Stan the Star is resting and hopes to have quiet week in Nursery but he just never knows what’s round the corner.

All the fish were packed in boxes of ice.

Stan the Star has a taste of everyone’s lunch.

Stan and the big starfish come face to face.

Stan the Star has fun in Maryport

Stan the Star gets a bit of help climbing the nets.

On top of the pirate ship admiring the view.

This week the morning children took Stan the Star to visit The Lake District Coast Aquarium at Maryport for an end of term treat. The journey seemed to pass surprisingly quickly and everyone was excited when we arrived at the harbour. Stan the Star had a great time in the aquarium although he was a little worried when he was dangled over the ray pool for a better look. To touch star fish, anemones and rays was quite an experience for everyone although watching the octopus devour his lunch of live crab was perhaps the most memorable event.

During a walk round the harbour to see the boats and the lighthouse, some children met the coastguard who showed them his van and boat and our visit to the adventure playground completed Stan the Star’s day out. As you can see from the photos, Stan was certainly given a real adventure by everyone: he seemed to try out all the equipment as he was passed from child to child. He had no chance to sleep on the way home as he tried to spend time with as many children as possible but there were a few who did succumb to the Land of Nod after a hectic day.

A big ‘thank you’ must go to all the Mums and Dads who came with us to make our outing a safe and happy day. We are delighted to say that the lady in the café commented that we were very well behaved which made us feel very proud of everyone. Unfortunately our photos in the aquarium are too dark to show here but we have a taster of our day above. Stan the Star is resting up and hopes to go back to Maryport next week with the afternoon boys and girls.

Getting excited about Primary 1

It’s amazing how quickly the term is disappearing and we are already at that point where Primary 1 teachers are visiting us in Nursery to get to know the children who will be in their class next year. It’s so exciting for everyone to meet their teacher and it helps to build the children’s confidence for the next big step in their lives. We are very lucky to have had visits from several teachers who have kindly taken the time to visit us at such a busy time and we look forward to more visits soon. We managed to take a snapshot of Miss Houston this week, meeting the pupils who will go to Elmvale Primary in August.

We showed Miss Houston our special books.

Miss Houston showed us her special book about Elmvale.

Out and About in the Community

As we have been learning about our community and the people who work in it, we recently paid visits to our local sorting office and police station.

On Red Nose Day local fire officers visited Nursery and we had great fun trying out the hose on the fire appliance, as well as learning how to stay safe. The firefighters joined in the fun, borrowing silly hats for Red Nose Day.

The children enjoyed this taster of the world of work and several hope to be postal workers, firefighters or police officers in the future although our discussions have revealed that many also have dreams of becoming a princess or a pirate.

Visit to Primary 4

This week we were invited to visit Primary 4 to see their work on Annan. In Nursery we have been learning about our local community so it was interesting to see what the older children had found out. The boys and girls in Primary 4 looked after us very well and told us all about their newspapers and wonderful displays. Nursery children were good listeners and showed great confidence in the wider school environment. Thank you very much to Miss Cameron and Primary 4 for making us feel so welcome.

Annan Museum visit

The children all seemed to enjoy the recent Christmas craft workshop at Annan Museum. We hope you liked the cards, decorations and clay snowmen the children brought home. We’d like to say a big thank you to those parents who helped us and to Annan Museum staff who made us feel very welcome and provided all the wonderful materials.