Running activities in the holidays is a great way of making contact with both young kids and their parents. There can be a tremendous contrast in the way they behave if the families are from different backgrounds.
I had a lovely time with one family yesterday - a father and three children ages between two and six. They all got stuck in and worked away making popup cards, going home with a collection of working 'masterpieces'. Even the youngest contributed. A focussed activity for two hours around a table and later briefly on chairs listening to a couple of stories being told.
The day before another two very different families. One where both mother and a six year old sat with me making cards of our own whilst another family of mother and two children found the activity wasn't for them. It was never-the-less great to have contact and chat: with the possibilty of a totally different activity next time.
This week we're talking of going to Grange for a day out by train. The excitement of the train journey all together; feeding the ducks; cycling along the Prom; story telling all round a table in the corner of lovely cafe; play in a great little park. Train home with exhausted kids ready for food and bed!
It's at this age - 0 to 7 that children develop a lot of their basic characteristics. As a former teacher having the parents there with the children makes the interaction with each other and the outside world even more fascinating.
Now it's switch off time at the allotment!
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