Gruffalo’s Child Excursion

On Tuesday, 15^th May 2012 children from Early Stage 1, Stage 1 and Stage 2 went to the Seymour Centre to see the stage play Gruffalo’s Child. This show was an adaptation of a well- known children’s story book.

The children were bubbling with excitement as they lined up at 9.30am to board the buses for the trip to the city. It really didn’t take that long to reach the destination and there were lots of things to see on the way. A little way into the trip someone started to feel unwell but courageously continued on.

On arrival at the theatre we could see other school children, just as excited as Padstow Park. We were nice and early so we found a quiet spot at the back of the theatre to eat and play before the show began. Some children were well prepared with small balls to play handball. Others played in and out of the gardens. The kindergarten children played Stuck in the Mud and Freeze.

At 1pm we all headed inside for the show. As we were shown to our seats we could see huge, spooky trees on the stage. There were 3 actors in the show and they played all the parts. The Gruffalo was large and hairy, the Guffalo’s child was small and hairy and there was a lady who was the mouse. Other characters that appeared were a snake, an owl and a fox. They were very cleverly portrayed. The audience were asked to participate by clapping and calling out. There were lots of funny parts.

At 2.30pm we left the theatre and caught the bus back to school. There was a bit of traffic but we managed to get back to school just after the bell. Lots of mums, dads and others were anxiously waiting at the bus stop for us, but no need to worry as we all made it back ok, except for that one person who felt sick on the way in to the show. She felt so much worse by the time we got back to school, poor Mrs Graham, she just can’t do bus trips very well!

Thank You Mrs Holden for organising such a fantastic educational experience for us all.

Fruit Trees

Thanks to the wonderful support our school received at our Fun Run this year, we have been able to purchase 9 fruit trees to establish a fruit grove. The ideal location appeared to be the garden area near B Block. This area allows plenty of sunshine and provides a spot where children can watch the trees grow and change throughout the seasons. We now are the proud owners of 2 apple trees, as cross pollination is needed for the trees to produce fruit, an avocado tree, a pear, mandarin, lime, lemon, peach, and a nectarine tree.  Autumn is the ideal time to plant the trees while the ground still holds some warmth, but you will notice that the leaves are changing colour and falling off. This is normal as the trees will be busy on the inside during winter getting ready to produce leaves, blossoms and fruit in the spring. It will be a wonderful experience to observe the changes happening and to perhaps be able to pick and eat fresh fruit. We must keep in mind that the trees may not be very productive for the first few years but we must be optimistic. When Spring arrives the trees will receive some vitamins to help boost them along. We have also planted some lavender bushes near the trees as they will attract the bees that we need to pollinate the trees.

We hope that you enjoy our fruit grove and take time to visit throughout the year to see them grow and change.