The children have fun playing farmers in the adventure playground |
I am a chair
of a playgroup which uses a village hall for our sessions, so the
headache of finding an alternative venue occurs at least once a
year. This year, however, problem solved!
Since the Norfolk
Rural Life Museum at Gressenhall has been refurbished, all reports
have been positive.
I visited myself
to check out the improvements and then bought a year's pass.
However, I did
wonder if a playgroup visit would be as successful.
Museums still
have a stuffy reputation and the workhouse experience is more suited
to over-fives. Plus, if the weather is bad my under-fives soon become
bored and restless.
Welcome
revamp
But thanks to
the revamp, the education centre has had a welcome programme of
improvements.
Martine (far left) with the children from the playgroup |
It is still
in the same building but has all new equipment, activities and offers
a good-sized base where you can entertain 20 or more pre-schoolers
in a safe, stimulating environment for a day.
Visits
in relay
Used as a base,
we took smaller groups of the children round the museum exhibits
and then returned when they lost interest and let them relax and
play until they were ready for more.
Petting the cows is a fun part of the museum's activities for
under-fives |
If you are lucky
with the weather, as we were, Gressenhall provides a range of outside
toys to use in the garden attached to the education centre. Two
gates have to be kept guarded but it is not a problem.
The trip to
the farm is always a success and if the children are dressed appropriately
then the weather is not an issue because there's the education centre
to dry in.
Room
to call your own
We ate lunch
outside but we could have had it in the centre and with young children
it made such a difference to have a room we could call our own for
the morning.
There the children
could play, eat, read or draw and generally re-group ready for the
next sortie to a new load of experiences.
Hearty
recommendation
I heartily
recommend that if you have previously been and felt it was not as
good for under-fives as it is educational for over-fives, then give
it another try.
The emphasis
on learning through play has been embraced in this safe, stimulating
and affordable facility.
Do give it a
try - as a summer trip or just a change of scene, it is well worth
it.
See what
children have to say about Gressenhall
Norfolk Rural Life Museum and
take the pop-up tour
|
