A Teaching Day Out

For those that don't know, I teach children, that are for many reasons are not in school, on a one to one basis.  Usually these lessons take place in the library or the child's home.  I love this work as I have a certain amount of freedom and poetic licence with the core curriculum as I am also commissioned to teach life skills to many of these children.

Yesterday was a glorious spring day, much too nice to spend indoors so I decided that to take my young person to the East Anglian Railway Museum in Wakes Colne, Essex.  I have never been here before, but what a fabulous place.  We saw all sorts of different engines, carriages and wagons back to the invention of the railways.  There is a huge restoration shed, with all sorts of trains in various states of repair, there are ticket offices, freight sorting offices and so on.  It is very child friendly with lots and lots of hands on things to do and touch.  You can clamber in and over most of the engines and carriages.  The only thing was that I ended I feeling quite old that the trains of my youth are now deemed Museum pieces!   I also learned more about the old line that ran to Tollesbury.  It was called The Crab and Winkle Line as it used to carry the fresh crabs and oysters straight from the fishing boats to market.  Sadly it was demolished in 1951.

Over the Easter period Thomas the Tank Engine comes to visit and there are lots of activities, including a train ride.  I am thinking of taking the grandchildren, as they will absolutely love it, Bobby in particular is a huge Thomas fan.