3 March 2015
During Book Week Pre-prep and Middle Section were treated to a visit from some truly amazing characters! A squirrel monkey, ring-tailed lemur and two penguins descended on Abingdon Prep and created a real wow with the boys. This was an incredible opportunity for the children to literally get first hand experience of these beautiful creatures. Amid gasps of delight we were able to feel monkeys jumping onto our shoulders, relish in the colour, beauty and texture of the decorative tail of the lemur and feed fresh fish to the penguins. The children had the opportunity to learn about these animals from warm, entertaining and highly experienced keepers, who shared their incredible personal knowledge of each creature. We learnt about habitats, diet, lifestyle, character, behaviour and much more. Each of the animals is famous in its own right, as they belong to the Heythrop Zoological Gardens (HZG) who rear, build relationships with, and train the animals to take part in films and television productions. This means that they are tame and used to human contact, making for a very entertaining and highly educational experience for children and adults alike! This was a truly amazing experience, which the children are now using as a stimulus for their writing and one which we know, they will never forget.