Our second stop on our tour was Woodlands, near Doncaster. The school that Mike's children currently attend! The new Head, Mr Greenwood, welcomed the project into his school and brought over 90 year 5 and 6s for us to work with. The children came from two sites - St Joseph and St Teresa's in Woodlands and Our Lady's in Bentley.
It was a squeeze to get everyone in the main hall altogether, but with help from teachers and Anita Matthews from CMS who popped in to see us, we got the children in and out quickly with a costume change too!
As a team, we introduced some improvements to the programme and enjoyed the new opening scene coming to life as the children impressed the urgency of climate change to the audience... tick tock, tick tock...
Two Chinese dragons ran onto the stage showing us the culture, colour and life of China - quickly followed by the resources of the earth. However, the life is quickly gobbled up by the 'Black Dragon' - a polluting factory representing thousands across China. We are shown the millions of people who work hard producing the products that we consume so mindlessly of the process before purchasing.
Then, the museum of endangered and extinct species shows us how our abuse of the planet is killing animals, and inevitably, ourselves. A choice is needed now to make a change. The children finished their performance with their own song of challenges about the way we live and choices we make.
"We've got a solution, to stop the pollution!"
So a massive thank you to all involved - DOWN TO EARTH is shaping up well. The children of Woodlands and Bentley worked well together, and produced some excellent drama and take away some vivid experiences that will shape the way they make their decisions that affect the environment.
Pictures of the day available here (more following approval)