Glastonbury may have been cancelled this year, but that didn’t stop pre-school children in March celebrating with a music festival of their own.
Music, water sprinklers, mud, sunshine and bubbles had children at Maple Grove Pre-School partying in true Glastonbury style.
“The day is all about free play, having fun and learning through creativity, physical activities, sensory play, exploring and growing personal and social skills, all key components of the national curriculum,” said Tina Bidwell, group manager of the pre-school.
On arrival, children were handed their festival-style entry wrist bands. Maple Grove was decked out with bunting while a new stage was set up for the children to perform with toy instruments and dance to the music.
The sun shone as bubbles filled the playground and children, who could have their faces painted or decorated with glitter, ran through the water sprinklers.
The mud-pie area had been watered throughout the week so the children could experience the reality of a wet and muddy Glastonbury. Children could sit round a pretend campfire and read, chill out in the tepees and dens, go to the pets’ corner and play with the stuffed toy animals or paint boxes to recreate the area in Glastonbury where revellers paint stones and meditate.
A photo booth was set up with props the children had made and a Kidizoom camera was on hand for the children to take ‘selfies’ complete with special effects.
All the gates between the four rooms of the pre-school were opened so all 120 children could move around the school freely and explore different areas and activities and mix with other children. Snacks of hotdogs and milkshakes were served on a grass area outside.
Staff and pre-schoolers were dressed in festival-wear with shorts, wellies, Hawaiian garlands, sunglasses and children in ‘blue room’ had made their own flowered headbands.
Maple Grove first ran the Glastonbury-style festival last year and due to its success, the event is now run annually.
“Anything goes at a festival,” said Mrs Bidwell. “Parents don’t have to go out and buy something special for the children to wear, they can dress as simply or as flamboyantly as they want to.”
“Glastonbury might have been skipping a year, but we couldn’t miss it.”
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