Come to the Story Carousel where children will be transported into the world of stories through story time, parachute play, art & craft and sensory play.
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 Regular classes at Pelican on Portland |
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Story Carousel was born from seeing my own children enjoying the fantastic range of children’s books available today, from seeing them dancing and laughing to music and from my own love of art and creativity. As a full time mum I know the pressure to entertain energetic and inquisitive children and the desire to spend quality time connecting with your child. The huge range of books, creative ideas and activities available today are a wonderful thing, but can add to the huge pressure on parents to ‘do it all’. We all need some new ideas and input and it’s great if someone else can help out with that once in a while and that is what Story Carousel aims to do.
Our ‘stay and play’ classes take the pressure off you for a whole hour and will stimulate and entertain energetic young children. Story Carousel sessions provide plenty of opportunities for messy play without you having to worry about cleaning up at the end. As parents and carers you will find a relaxed and welcoming environment where you can enjoy high quality, nourishing and creative time together with your toddler or young child, and hopefully get the chance to gain some of the therapeutic effects of art and sensory play for yourself! Having children gives you a wonderful opportunity to read beautiful children’s books again, to play with paint and glitter and to squidge play-dough. There will be plenty of opportunities to socialise both for the children and adults.
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Story Carousel was set up by me, Lorna. I worked as a primary school teacher before having my own two children. As a teacher I experienced the powerful effects books can have on children’s learning and strived to teach in creative ways. Seeing my own two young children develop I have really enjoyed sharing stories with them and making crafts. Story Carousel combines my love of art as an amateur artist with a passion for children’s literature and working with children.
What our customers say…
I love that Lorna puts her heart and soul into planning Story Carousel – it’s obvious that she really cares and spends hours making all of the resources. The atmosphere is nice and calm with lots of varied activities to do. I like the story side to it too. My son, Sid likes that there are a lot of things to do which he can dip in and out of. We love Story Carousel – it’s our favourite thing to do!
Maddie, Mum to Sid (Sep 2015)
I love how Story Carousel is set up – it is all very welcoming and set up with so much love. Lorna, who runs Story Carousel, is very loving, helpful and creates an atmosphere which is so inviting. The sessions include a welcome song and a story which is incorporated in all of the activities. Jack enjoys exploring all the sensory play and Olivia loves all the arts and crafts, especially making The Three Little Pig puppets and taking them home to play with. Having run my own Nursery, from a teaching point of view, I think the set up at Story Carousel is great.
Charlotte, mum to Olivia &Jack (Sept 2015)
‘Lorna’s Story Carousel class is lovely. The perfect place to take your children to get messy!! All of the children I have taken here love this class and they also come away with a piece of artwork they have done to take home.’
Anna, childminder (Oct 2015)
‘Lorna’s play and make sessions are wonderful, I heartily recommend to anyone with a pre-schooler. I’ve been taking my almost-2-year-old daughter for a few months and whilst she’s at the younger end of the age spectrum there she still gets so much out of it and comes home with something to show for it every time. The ‘bear in a cup’ was a huge hit! Older children will get even more out of it! Lorna’s creative ideas blow me away. There is a song and a story and themed play every week. It really captivates the kids and the opportunities to play and learn and touch and squeeze are endless. My 6 year old is jealous and wants to come!’
Jacqueline, mum of Bobo (Oct 2015)
‘We’ve been going to this excellent class for a few months and my daughter really loves it. The activities are really well thought out and so varied. We’ve made kites, puppets and monsters which she still enjoys playing with. As well as the main activity there is a sensory/ messy area which is also great. Lorna is fantastic at helping out when I’ve got my hands full juggling a toddler and baby at the class. The overall feeling of the class is calm and not manic even when there is glitter, paint, play dough and all sorts out!’
Laura , Harper’s Mum (Nov 2015)
‘We have been going to Lorna’s class Story Carousel for over a year now and we are amazed at how many creative ideas she has. Every week has a different theme with something fun to make and take home, along with an element of messy floor-based play. My daughter loves going and always has a great time. The stories Lorna reads are often something a bit different, new writers and smaller publishers so it is always interesting to see what we will hear and we have added to our own library with her influence. Definitely worth going!’
Georgie, Charlotte and Audrey’s Mum (Nov 2015)
‘Story Carousel is by far the best class we’ve ever been to, and the highlight of our week. Ida really enjoys hearing new stories and the range of activities every week really inspire her to get messy and creative, and we end up playing with the things we’ve made and role playing the stories for weeks after. It’s also given me loads of great ideas for new ways to play at home. Lorna is so welcoming and obviously puts so much effort and care into the classes. My shy little girl has really come out of her shell there’
Lauren, mum of Ida (Jan 2016)
‘Excellent class. So creative and fun-filled. A lot of thought put into each and every class. My daughter loves it!’
Katie (Feb 2016)
