The Holly Lodge Centre hosted a group of children and their families from Refugee Action Group Kingston in late October in the lead up to Halloween. During the half term break, we welcomed the group to the Centre to take part in Nocturnal Animals with spooktastic Halloween twist!
Led by Astrid with support from our marvellous volunteers Rita Ward, Gill Cumberland, Lynne Flinders, Celia Simpson, and Carole Smith, the children spent an engaged morning on the Nature Trail, using their 5 senses to understand how nocturnal animals navigate the world at night, including having a go at digging for worms in the dark. They also learned about the evidence nocturnal animals leave on our nature trail, in the form of paw prints and animal poo, with the opportunity to make their own, always a hit with the younger ones!
The afternoon was spent on creative pursuits with the children getting into the Halloween spirit by making magic wands, decorating nature crowns, and spider’s webs from natural materials. We finished up with spell making, hot chocolate and an impromptu storytelling led by one of our participants.
It was a lovely session and we received the following generous feedback from the group leader:
I just wanted to say a huge thank you for the wonderful day at Holly Lodge yesterday. It surpassed all our expectations and was unanimously voted the best trip yet. The refugee families were extremely happy to be outside and the children loved the range of activities. I was so impressed with all the learning aids and the interactive/explore approach that you embedded in everything. Thank you all too for your kindness and patience. It made the families feel very comfortable and wanted.
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