Today our toddlers at Hammersmith Nursery went on a trip to the Southbank Centre to take part in their Imagine Children’s Festival!
On the way to the performance, the children enjoyed an exciting trip through London on our very own minibus. They sang their favourite songs, looked out for some familiar sights and talked about a range of things they saw along the way, such as types of transport, buildings and statues. They passed the iconic Westminster Abbey and saw just how big the Big Ben really is! They crossed over Westminster Bridge and looked out for various water transport such as Uber boats, houseboats and police boats.
The children were amazed when they saw the London Eye. This amazing sight prompted questions such as “why is it called the London Eye?” and “why is it tall?”. Conversations like these are encouraged to help children not only with their conversational skills but also increase their language variety and encourage them to think more abstractly about the world around them; encouraging them to use their imagination and problem-solve during conversations they may not have had if they were onsite.
Once they had arrived, the children visited the Rise and Fall Non-Verbal Performance. This performance consisted of relaxed, quiet, and calm- movements in the space, The aim of the festival is to provide sensory stimulation for young children in a calm and relaxed manner. The children enjoyed watching all of the white balloons rising and falling alongside a woman dancing, blowing and throwing balloons around the space. The children watched the show beautifully. They were engaged as the balloons moved around the room.
The children stopped for a healthy picnic lunch of sandwiches and fruits in the designated picnic area before going to explore the rest of the centre. The children wanted to see the river Thames so they took a short walk over to the river. There, they counted the different boats they saw as well as waving to them as they passed. They also saw the Golden Jubilee bridge, with a train crossing it, it was very exciting!
During their adventures, the children discovered a Dichroic Sphere (a light refraction sculpture) the children were mesmerised by the different shapes and colours they saw in the sphere. This encouraged the children to talk about and name the different colours they could see inside it and watch the shapes move as they moved around the sculpture, it was amazing!
On the journey back to Willows the children spied the Houses of Parliament as they crossed over Lambeth Bridge on the coach. The children returned from their adventures and told their friends and teachers all about the exciting experiences they had.
