Leeds Rhinos Foundation successfully piloted a pre-school programme designed to prepare toddlers for learning and interacting in a school environment at Colton Primary School before Half Term and are now looking to offer the service wider across the city
Ronnie's Rascals, which is suitable for children aged 2-4, targets the national curriculum for early years’ foundation stage, covering themes including communication and language, physical and emotional development, literacy and numeracy, understanding the world and expressive arts and design.
The four-week pilot was the first time Leeds Rhinos’ official charity have worked with the pre-school age group, utilising the charity’s experienced school delivery staff who built FUNdamental movement games, interactive nursery rhymes and circle time activities to build confidence into the sessions.
Programme Leader Gavyn Lightowler commented on the successful pilot:
“We are looking at the pre-school age with Ronnie’s Rascals and have put together a programme to get the children ‘school ready’ for when they start in September next year or in some cases for getting prepared for nursery.
“The programme just covered the basics, looking at coordination and their confidence interacting with other children which I think has been the biggest improvement in the group we have just finished.”
Speaking during the pilot programme one parent said:
“I would really recommend it, I think it’s good for the children’s confidence, my grandson has certainly got more confidence and the other children have really enjoyed it as well, just going by the looks on their faces, they all listened really well.”
“The staff really understood the age group which is something that is quite difficult I think, our grandson is probably the youngest here at 2-and-a-half and he loved it, all four weeks, he looked forward to coming and when her got here he really enjoyed himself.”
To cap off the four-week pilot at Colton Primary, the children got to meet Leeds Rhinos mascot Ronnie the Rhino, who joined in the session.
“We looked primarily at the national curriculum of learning that they will encounter in school and simplified that a little bit, putting it in more game situations and getting the kids to talk and interact and obviously bring Ronnie the Rhino in to the class was another side which I have to say they looked a little bit nervous but by the end they enjoyed having him around,” added Lightowler.
Leeds Rhinos Foundation are looking to offer the programme city-wide in 2017. If you are interested in sponsoring Ronnie’s Rascals contact Gareth.Cook@leedsrhinosfoundation.org
See highlights of the programme running at Colton Primary School below: