Many of the children attending Faraway Tree Day Nursery in Derby are interested in animals but have limited opportunities to explore outside of the city, so staff decided to widen their experiences by taking them on a day trip to a dairy farm. Not only did they get to meet lots of animals during their visit to Bluebells Farm Park in Spondon, Derbyshire, but they even watched a cow give birth.
what they did
Staff prepared children for the farm trip by showing them pictures of the animals and sharing books on farms. At Bluebells, the children were taken on a farmer-guided visit, which included:
- Walking around the paddocks and seeing animals including cows, goats, sheep and alpacas. They spoke about how the farmers care for the animals and make sure they are kept safe and well fed. They watched some of the lambs be bottle fed. ‘One of the lambs kept being pushed away by the others and couldn’t get to a bottle,’ says Maxine. ‘The farmer guided the lamb to a bottle, which the children liked.’
- Feeding food pellets to the sheep and goats. ‘The children were really excited to feed the animals and found it a funny, tickly sensation,’ says Maxine. ‘We showed them how to keep their hands flat as they offered the food and there was a lot of laughter. All the children wanted to take part, even those who are normally not confident to try new things, so that was really wonderful.’
- Meeting the dairy herd and learning about food production – ‘farm to fork’ or, as they refer to it at Bluebells, ‘cow to cone’, because it produces its own range of ice-cream from the milk, which the children were able to sample. They also spoke about how cow’s milk is used to produce cheese, butter and yoghurt. The children saw one of the cows being milked by a robotic milking machine.
- Going into a cow barn and having the good fortune to see one of the cows in labour. They watched as a farmer helped the calf to be born with a calving jack to help guide it out of the birth canal. ‘This was a highlight for most of us, even the adults who had never seen it before,’ says Maxine. ‘It was wonderful to be there. The children were really intrigued by the process and wanted to know what was happening. They saw the calf’s legs coming out first with the farmer’s help, then watched as the cow licked her calf clean. Some children were concerned that the calf was lying on the ground but we reassured them and they watched it stand up.’
- Children were introduced to the farm’s guinea-pigs and were allowed to stroke them. ‘It was a lovely experience for them because most of the children do not have pets at home,’ says Maxine. ‘We spoke about how it’s important not to scare the animals and to be kind and gentle with them, which they were.’
- The children also enjoyed the play areas, which included digging and making sand castles in a barn filled with sand, climbing on big apparatus, bouncing on a giant pillow and riding on toy tractors.
their ethos
The nursery is situated in a deprived inner-city area and many parents do not drive. ‘We want children to experience the world around them and broaden their understanding of the world through hands-on learning and experiences. Learning in real-life situations is more powerful than through books and pictures,’ says early years practitioner Maxine Stone.
‘It was nice to take the children somewhere where they would not necessarily go with their families. For some of the children, it was the first time they’d been on a coach so that in itself was exciting. Also, a lot of the children had never met farm animals, so it was great to give them that experience.’
extension activities
Back at nursery, children talked about watching the calf being born. A colleague brought her newborn baby in to meet the children and staff linked it to the newborn calf. They compared how the baby can’t stand or walk yet, but the calf did that soon after it was born. ‘The children were fascinated to think that they were so small once,’ says Maxine. ‘We spoke about how she cares for the baby and that it just has milk, similar to the lambs, but that once the baby is bigger it will start to have solid food too.’- To build on the children’s interest in animals, they are planning to explore safari animals, including lions, elephants and giraffes, and Arctic animals, such as polar bears, seals and walrus. They will discuss the different habitats and climates where the animals live.
what they gained
Maxine says she was impressed with how the children behaved during the trip; that they listened to the adults and treated the animals with care and respect. ‘Some of the children were apprehensive around the animals, especially the goats, which were jumping, but we reassured them and held their hands when they were feeding them and they soon became more confident to do it on their own,’ she recalls.
Children now appreciate more about animals, how they are cared for and the role they play in producing food for us. They now understand that milk comes from cows, not just in bottles from the supermarket. They have also learned the different names for farm animals’ babies – calves, lambs and kids.
‘Going to the farm provided the children with an experience that they will always remember, and that was enriching for their learning and development on many levels, from personal skills to expanding their understanding of the world,’ adds Maxine. ‘We hope to take them on more trips in the future.’
Further information
- Bluebells Farm Park: https://bluebelldairy.co.uk
BOOK CORNER
Farmyard Hullabaloo! by Giles Andreae and David Wojtowycz
Come down to the farmyard for a noisy, rhyming animal adventure. Each page introduces a different animal, with a short read-aloud rhyme.
Look Inside a Farm by Katie Daynes and Simone Abel
Discover what a cow’s day is like, how a farm changes with the seasons and about the different animals and machines. Lift the flaps and explore the lovely illustrations.
What the Ladybird Heard by Julia Donaldson and Lydia Monks
This brilliant rhyming adventure features a cast of farm animals and two crafty robbers with a plan to steal the farmer’s fine prize cow.
Where Does My Food Come From? by Annabel Karmel and Alex Willmore
Find out how a wide range of popular foods – from eggs, cheese, tomatoes and pasta to honey and strawberries – are grown or made.
Oh Dear! by Rod Campbell
Buster is staying with Grandma on the farm. But where will he find the eggs for breakfast? Lift the flaps as you follow Buster around the farm and meet a host of animals.
Milk From Cow to Carton by Aliki
A guided tour that begins with grazing cows, proceeds through milking and a trip to the dairy, and ends with foods made from milk. An informative and simple explanation of milk’s trip from grass to cow to drinking glass.
