Coast & Country’s Westfield Farm welcomed children from Dormanstown Primary Academy for a day of fun and learning with a variety of exotic animals, courtesy of ZooLab.
The children were delighted and amazed by the creatures, which included snails, cockroaches, stick insects, tarantulas, scorpions, hermit crabs, snakes, frogs, toads, rats and even a bosc monitor lizard.
Youngsters had the opportunity to meet and handle the animals whilst learning about them and their habitats. The event had a myths and legends theme and aimed to unlock some of the extraordinary myths, legends, fables and parables about the animals.
Barry McBride, Westfield Farm Co-ordinator, said: “This follows on from our recent bug hunt with the children from the Academy and it was fantastic fun. Seeing the children’s faces when they touched and held animals they had never seen close up before was wonderful.
“Westfield Farm is an incredible community resource and investing in these sessions for pupils from Dormanstown Primary Academy is very rewarding for everyone involved. Thanks to ZooLab for such a memorable experience.”
Joanne Boyes, Nursery Teacher at Dormanstown Primary Academy said: “All the children thoroughly enjoyed meeting the creatures and having the opportunity to touch and hold them.
“It was a great opportunity to do something a little bit different, it was really interactive and I think that appealed to the children much more than the grownups!
“Working with Barry at Westfield Farm is fantastic for the Academy and allows our children to take part in some really fun, but educational events.”