Glasgow Airport sticks its neck out to help local nursery group
27 July 2012
Nursery children in Renfrew were given the opportunity to bring a popular picture book to life thanks to Glasgow Airport.
A £1,300 donation from the airport’s FlightPath Fund enabled St James’ Nursery to bring in expressive art specialists Octokids to work on a production of the award-winning picture book Giraffes Can’t Dance.
Octokids worked with 120 children aged between three and five over a 10 week period to hone their dancing, acting and musical performance skills. The project culminated in two performances in front of an audience consisting of parents, older school pupils, councillors and care home residents.
Margaret Convery, Head Teacher of St James’ Primary School and Nursery, said: “The two performances were wonderful and the whole experience was very beneficial for everyone involved as it created a very strong link between the nursery and the school.
“The nursery children learned practical skills such as how to use a camera and camcorder, and learned about different countries, cultures, animals, transport modes, musical styles and dances. The older children and staff provided artwork for the shows.”
“We have 10 children here whose first language is not English and one child with additional support needs. Using dance, drama and music they were able to express themselves with no language barriers.
“Bringing in this kind of expertise is not cheap and the funding we received from Glasgow Airport allowed us to put on a really comprehensive programme. We hope it will enable us to work on a similar production every year, with the children and staff involved in the workshops passing on their knowledge to others.”
Mark Johnston, Glasgow Airport’s Head of Security and Terminal Operations, said: “This is a very worthwhile and innovative project and we were pleased to support it through the Glasgow Airport FlightPath Fund.
“The children clearly had a lot of fun and learned a range of skills that will help them to develop as people and performers. It is also important that the programme is not just a one-off and will hopefully benefit children attending St James’ Nursery for years to come.”
Giraffes Can’t Dance first hit bookshelves in 1999. Using words and pictures it tells the story of Gerald, a tall giraffe whose neck was long and slim, but had bandy knees and skinny legs. Every year he dreads the great Jungle Dance, but one day he realises it doesn't matter that he is different from everyone else, he just needs different music to dance to.
The Glasgow Airport FlightPath fund is a community funding programme designed to ensure that surrounding communities share in its success. In 2011 it distributed over £170,000 to 60 organisations.
