Mothers and Toddlers

For some years now the students from the Child Development GCSE course have been organising parties at Christmas and Easter for toddlers and the parents who bring them to swimming lessons in our school pool.

The students themselves do the costing, planning, purchase of food, buying of prizes and organisation of invitations and party activities. I am always impressed with their excellent planning skills. Nothing is forgotten and they even carry out a risk assessment!

The children seem to really enjoy themselves and join in most of the games. It gives the parents a bit of a break and for a nominal charge of £1, the students manage to buy or make prizes, make all the mostly healthy, party food and give the children a party bag at the end .

One highlight for me is watching my Child Development students gain self- confidence through organising and leading the activities. Another highlight is the real life Punch and Judy show staged complete with puppets and scripted by the students themselves. Parents and children love these shows and boo and hiss as naughty Mr Punch arrives on the scene.