Happy to be out in the sunshine, the young Mudchute gardeners are pictured on the way to the compost heap, to get some nutrient rich soil for their seeds.
We’ve been very busy this past week with a full programme of events and activities for the February Half Term holidays!
The February forecast has been fresh and foreboding, but that didn’t put off a plethora of visitors to the farm this half term. Just in time for spring the courtyard had some new growth of it’s own, with the refurbished shop now in full swing and packed full of goodies for children and feed for the animals.
Sheep came out of their pens to greet the visitors, and children stroked their fleeces whilst the farmer told them animal facts. Did you know, sheep can see what’s behind them without turning their heads?
The open access classroom was as busy as the duck pond at feeding time! Cardboard boxes were transformed into robot furniture with a sprinkle of glitter, a handful of buttons,and a large dose of a child’s imagination. All the while,the class full of people were careful not to knock the hatch and brood incubators that sat on every available surface.
Another new venture at the farm was the children’s ecology activities. Sessions explored British wildlife, and what we can do to conserve it. With a bit of hard work we managed to make some bird boxes for our old friend the House sparrow. This will make for some chirpy birds as the House sparrow is in decline due to a lack of appropriate nest sites, and a shortage of insect food. Luckily, we made some tasty bird cakes too!
See more photos of the week’s activities on the next page!
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- Children take an extra close look at the animals in a drawing class around the farm. This young man has really captured our loveable rogue Boxer the Llama.
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- Two of Nature’s Superhero’s stand to admire the horses. In this session we discussed the problems that face nature around the globe, and thought of how super powers could help mitigate some of these obstacles. The cape on the right depicts a penguin at the foot of a melting polar ice cap, her magic power was to fire ice cubes from her hands.
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- Children learn to tie a clove hitch knot, and a reef knot for the ‘Survivor’ course.
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- A new nesting box, with an entrance big enough for a House sparrow. This fantastic box was built by six year old Emma and her mum.
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- Visitors trying their hand at a bit of indoor archery.
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- The goats enjoyed getting lots of extra treats as visitors helped the farm staff in Goats Go Crazy!
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- Children learning about the food chain.
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- The Living Classroom was briefly transformed into a miniature bingo hall during our Fun Day.
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- Pet Party brought some of your favourite small animals out to meet visitors.
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- One of our lop rabbits meeting a group of young visitors.
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- A chance for visitors to meet local community support officers and find out more about the DLR.
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- Happy to be out in the sunshine, the young Mudchute gardeners are pictured on the way to the compost heap, to get some nutrient rich soil for their seeds.
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- Hooking rubber ducks is harder than it looks! Prizes were on offer as part of the mini carnival stalls during our Fun Day.
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- Children brandished clipboards for the ‘bird identification workshop’, and made a strike next to the birds we spotted. The one that caused the biggest stir amongst the young birdwatchers was a handsome Goldfinch. From our results the Crow rules the roost on the farm (where numbers are concerned anyway).
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- Mario, Luigi and Mickey were among the special guests at our Fun Day.
Photos from the fun day and some of the week’s activities can be found here and photos of the Pony Club competition here.
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