On a rainy Wednesday morning in October, the YMCA Reading Parkside Pre-School children got on a coach to go to the YMCA Activity Centre in Padworth. Our coach driver was called Sally and she was a very safe driver!
The children loved looking out of the windows watching green fields flash by. The children spotted cows and horses eating grass, boats on a river, lots of red and green traffic lights and many many road signs.
Although our journey was short we were all so excited to get to Padworth. We put on our puddle suits, high vis jackets and wellies. An adult checked the boundaries and tied red ribbon to the trees giving the children a safe area to explore and play in.
The children had their own time to collect sticks, leaves and pine cones, playing a jumping game off of a small tree stump, learning how to take care of each other and work together as a team to roll a large branch. The children were amazing at playing a game of ‘Sticky toes’ A game that involves all the children listening when an adult says “Sticky toes” this means that they must come back to the adults and make a circle sticking our toes together.
The adults planned an activity using salt dough so the children could make a hedgehog and use the sticks that they collected for hedgehog spikes.
The children all enjoyed a cup of hot chocolate and a bread roll that had been made at Pre-School by the children.
It was then time to explore the field. The children found evidence of rabbits living in the field and had fun playing a listening game.
The children then enjoyed a story of Goldilocks and the three bears and did wonder if Padworth is somewhere where bears live? Or if Goldilocks ever visited the centre.
It was time to get back on Sally’s coach and come back to Pre-School. There was lots of yawning on the way back but nobody fell to sleep!
We cannot wait for our next visit in March.
Thank you to Berkshire Community Foundation who has provided us with the funding to pay for the transport our trips to Padworth this year! 
