events

Community Learning Events Easter Workshops: a report

Community events and family fun days

Popular workshops

MORE than 150 people took part in the medieval dyeing and textiles workshop, which was very pleasing. Thanks to everyone who took part.

Did you make a figure at the Easter clay workshop?

TO everyone who took part in our successful clay workshop over Easter:

The clay figures which were made during the workshop have been fired, quenched, cleaned, waxed and are now being exhibited around the county. Why not make a day of it and see if you can find your clay figures on display?

The exhibition dates are:

Woodford Lodge, Winsford. To be arranged.

Mount Pleasant Gardens, Yeld Lane, Kelsall, Chester. September 3 until the end of the month as part of a national sculpture exhibition. After the exhibition in Kelsall, the pieces will be returned to Nantwich Museum where they were created, to await collection by their makers.

For more information contact Liz Ellis on 01244 678322 or liz.ellis@lineone.net.

Thanks again for taking part and I hope to see you at future workshops!

The Dragon Trail

THE winners of the Dragon Trail run by the Museum as part of the town's St George's Day celebrations.

They are pictured with Town Councillor Keith Cafferty, who organised the event, and Allison Horrobin, the Museum's Community Learning Officer.

FORTY five children entered the Dragon Trail, which was won by eight-year-old Kirsty Smith. She won £20 donated by Nantwich Police Officer, Paul Hassall. She is pictured with the runners-up, who each received a bar of chocolate, as they pose for the Nantwich Chronicle photographer. All the children were presented with a dragon drawing as a souvenir. Our thanks to everyone who took part.

l The dragon drawing was done by Anna Eite, aged 13, of Brine Leas School.

New exhibition and workshops

MAY HALF TERM

Dyeing to get stuck in?

Wednesday, May 28th and Thursday 29th: 11am to 3pm, Drop-in Workshop. Learn about - and have a go at - traditional methods of dyeing wool and take part in a variety of fun weaving and textile activities.

SUMMER HOLIDAY EVENTS

Wednesday 6^th August, and Thursday 7^th, 11am to 3pm, drop–in workshop

Summer Arts and Crafts

The following activities are inspired by our Scary Monsters exhibition (August 9 to September 20).

The Monsters are coming

Saturday, August 9: Scary Star Wars characters will be roaming around the Museum and town centre. At 2pm: Come to the museum and bring a camera so that you can have your photo taken with our intergalactic friends!

Wednesday 13^th August and Thursday 14^th, 11am to 3pm:

Crafty Monster Madness

Are you a bit of a monster? Come and make your own monster mask to scare your family and friends! There is also a whole range of activities.

Wednesday 20^th August and Thursday 21^st, 11am to 12pm and 1.30pm to 2.30pm.

Move Like A Monster!

Storytelling and drama workshop inspired by our exhibition and previous workshops. Please note that there are limited places for this event. Book early to avoid disappointment.

l Entry to the museum and all activities is free of charge. All ages welcome. Children must be accompanied. Workshops (unless stated otherwise) run on Wednesdays and Thursdays from 11am to 3pm, and activities usually take an hour to complete. Donations gratefully received. For more information, or to book a place, call Allison on 01270 627104.

SCHOOLS - For special events just for your pupils, see our Education Service page.

PREVIOUS EVENTS

Easter workshops - and other activities

WE had three very successful workshops over the school Easter holidays. They were attended by a total of 346 people. One was a clay workshop (pictured here), and the other two featured art. They were all inspired by the Garden Delights exhibition.

Children took part in making their own clay figure with help from Liz Ellis one of the exhibiting artists in the exhibition. Their work has become part of a touring exhibition, and when it returns in October the young artists can take it home for keeps.

The two art workshops involved a variety of activities from painting pebbles to creating colourful spirals or making window scenes and painting butterflies.

We also ran Easter egg hunts, which involved the youngsters answering questions about the Museum exhibits. There was a small prize for those who successfully completed the entry form. We had 133 entries.

In addition, 85 entry forms were completed for the Hunt the Spirals competition which was run in conjunction with the Garden Delights exhibition. Spiral designs in various forms (such as cotton reels) had been added to the normal Museum exhibits.

What a great way to start my second year as the Museum's Community Learning Officer!

Pictures: copyright David Heke.

February

HALF-term Children's Workshops were held. There was a connection with the exhibition exploring the work of the much celebrated and collected local artist Herbert St. John Jones. A fun children's quiz and hunt for clues around the museum proved popular. The visitors could also create an artistic "window into the past" in an art workshop, and design and make a Valentine's Card for that special someone.

January

THE museum held a series of special workshops for Nantwich schools to commemorate the English Civil War Battle of Nantwich and Holly Holy Day. These workshops entailed professional re-enactors and workshops focusing on costumes, weaponry and music of the times.

December

TO coincide with our Cheshire Myths and Legends exhibition, I led storytelling sessions (that's me on the right) about some of the local legends explored within the exhibition. These sessions were presented in schools and involved costumes and props as well as encouraging participation from the children.

A Fun Day for children was held in the Museum on December 15, including storytelling and a workshop at which the youngsters could help to create a copy of a window in Nantwich Parish Church which features The Green Man.

October

OVER the schools half term we staged a special display of toys from our collections and a small exhibition at the Museum of one school's own favourite toys. The pupils wrote their own labels, explaining why they have chosen the toys, and were involved in deciding how the toys are displayed during a visit to the Museum in the week prior to half term. We also staged a Sock Puppet Workshop (two puppets are pictured).

Allison Horrobin, Community Learning Officer

lJudge for yourself the popularity of these events by seeing the Thank You cards made by schoolchildren after visits, scattered around the Joseph Heler Room (which also doubles as Allison's office).

lRead all about Allison, our Community Learning Officer, on her page.