Reception's outing to Quinta do Pisão

In the Reception classes the children have been learning all about planting and how to look after wildlife and protect Nature. The children have been busy planting seeds and bulbs in school in the outside area, and learning about life cycles of living creatures.

So it was agreed that a visit to a farm would be a great idea, to explore Nature and see all the changes that occur in Spring. The children were very excited with their first school outing and after gathering their bags and hats they were ready to catch the bus that would take us to the farm.

Upon arrival at the Quinta do Pisão we were welcomed by two guides who explained how we would participate in the activities. Our first activity was visiting the donkeys and horses, as well as helping to groom them. Then the children all had a turn riding on a donkey and they learnt about the importance of sitting straight in a saddle, and wearing a helmet to protect your head!

After that it was time for morning snacks and the children were delighted to meet a baby goat, who was very friendly and very interested in the children’s snacks. She was very lucky as the children were more than happy to share some tasty titbits with her!

Then we went down to the orchard where the farmer was waiting for us. He led the way through the neatly planted rows of vegetables, and the children recognised the names of many vegetables. They learnt that some vegetables like onions, potatoes and turnips grow under the ground. But that lettuces, cabbages and tomatoes grow above the ground.

The farmer also mentioned about the importance of saving water, and that the orchard was watered by an irrigation system that only gives the necessary amount of water. We were also told that the rain water was saved in tanks in case of water shortages. The children also saw a hen coop with lots of chickens that were pecking at the ground. The farmer told us that chickens were very useful at cleaning and mixing the soil, in order to make the soil healthy to receive new seeds.

After our visit to the orchard the children were getting hungry, so we all walked to a lovely pic-nic area by a river to have lunch and play. After lunch the children went on a Spring Nature Hunt, and with the help of clipboards the children completed a tick list with items they had to find on the farm!

This kept the children really busy, and made them concentrate on looking for all the necessary things, such as leaves, nests, flowers, seedlings, daffodils, blossom, birds, insects, amongst others! Sadly our visit was getting to an end, and it was time to get back on the bus and return to school.

The children had a fun-filled day full of sunshine and fresh air, and really enjoyed exploring and learning all about the wildlife at Quinta do Pisão!