Isle of Man Guide

Colour- Me-Wild- an Activity day for Reception Classes at the Wildlife Park.

Not so long ago it was pretty rare for school trips to the Wildlife Park to take place in the months of October and November. Nowadays, however, the Park is booked almost every day with classes of 4 and 5 year olds taking part in a special activity day called “Colour-Me-Wild”.

“The theme of the day is colour and camouflage”, explains Liz Brunswick, the Park’s education officer, who devised the activity day four years ago. “The children take part in a variety of fun activities throughout the day, including painting, collage, poetry and song. They seem to have a great time and their teachers tell me they learn a great deal from their visit”

Although most of the action takes place in the Park’s classroom so that the day can go ahead in all weathers, there is also a short outdoor trail which involves the children matching coloured discs with various animals around the Park and posting them in special boxes. One of the most popular indoor activities has the children hiding coloured “bugs” on a matching background to camouflage them. This is followed up by painting a colourful lizard, camouflaged on a matching background.

An appearance from Slinky, a friendly boa constrictor, always makes a big impression, epically as the children are encouraged to touch him. Teachers tell us that they talk about him months later! Since it started in 2004 Colour-Me-Wild has grown more popular each year, with close to 500 children visiting this year.

“We’ve had excellent feedback from the schools who have visited,” commented Nick Pinder, the Park’s General Manager, “and I’m really pleased that we can continue to provide for the schools throughout the year, rather than just in the warmer weather”

Another busy period for education at the Park is expected in February and March, when “Rainforest Magic”, an activity day which teaches primary school children about rainforest conservation, is planned for the fifth year.

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