It was a very exciting start to the day at Cypress Lower today as author Jeanne Willis came to visit us and her book ‘Bog Baby’ is part of our Reception curriculum. All the children were very excited to meet her.
We began the day with a whole school assembly, where Jeanne told us about her love of animals and some of the strange pets she has had. These included a toad called David and a rat called Lucia. Jeanne also had caterpillars, a Giant Atlas Moth and an African Flower Beetle. We enjoyed hearing all about them. Jeanne then told us about how snakes shed their skin and some children got to hold the skin of a corn snake and a much larger snake so that they could compare the two.
We were then treated to a reading of ‘Bog Baby’ by the author herself which had us all enthralled. We found out that the book is about Jeanne and her sister Chrissie. We also talked about how to make a habitat for a Bog Baby to live in.
Year 1 then had the chance to ask Jeanne questions about her writing and she shared with us the first book she wrote when she was a little girl. She also showed her book ‘Birds Nest Soup’ that she worked on with her sister when they were little. Jeanne wrote the words and Chrissie did the illustrations.
Each Reception Class also had a workshop with Jeanne where they got to ask questions. The children then made their own Bog Babies and created a habitat for them to live in. They will then take these home so they can look after them.
Thank you Jeanne for inspiring the children to be imaginative and write. We also send a huge thank you to the Cypress PTFA who have generously funded all our author visits this year.
Ms Binks and the Cypress Lower Team
