"Children do not need to be made to learn about the world, or shown how. They want to, and they know how." -John Holt

Monday, August 25, 2008

We made it to Davis!

Somehow visiting this place last year escaped us and we were gung-ho not to let it happen again. And thanks to a friends discounted passes, we didn't! Forgive the loooong post and here we go!

First up, baby goats (because we don't get enouh of that at home!)... Simone was thrilled that the cutest, littlest guy jumped up to sit with her and she did NOT want to leave her post.Gabriel found another cutie to snuggle with.After dragging Simone along, we came upon the giant cow.
And Gabe got to milking.Next up, the Reptile Ranch. Luckily we were just in time to handle the White's Tree Frog.And check out the little guy's name! I'm *sure* we were holding Leap. ;)
Caden was fascinated by the snakes as usual.After that, you guessed it! More goats! Definitely no shortage of goats here! Bomey again demonstrated her talent as master Caprine Whisperer.A highlight for all was the man-made water stream thingamajig.Caden loooooved collecting (a.k.a hoarding) the plastic fish and splashing about.
But that was all in preparation for the sprinkler pad later on...Historically, my little man avoids such nonsense but I finally convinced him that it just might be fun. He got soaked and had a blast.So much so, that I never even saw the other two monkeys playing in the big kids section. They're in there somewhere!The pedal cars where another big hit. Except Caden was too small to operate one but aside from his tantrums, they were golden.
We're nearing the end here, I promise! In the same area as the pedal cars was a great playground with unique things to do like hop around on colored squares... (there's that "L" word again!)Cool blocks to assemble into even cooler structures...And purple dinos to scale...And it wouldn't be a farm visit at all if there wasn't a pony ride to top off the day!

We're hoping to score a membership for next year so we can visit ad naseum!

1 comment:

Sarah said...

That place looks like the bomb! Love the froggy named 'Leap'!

"By nature people are learning animals. Birds fly; fish swim; humans think and learn. Therefore, we do not need to motivate children into learning by wheedling, bribing, or bullying. We do not need to keep picking away at their minds to make sure they are learning. What we need to do - and all we need to do - is to give children as much help and guidance as they need and ask for, listen respectfully when they feel like talking, and then get out of the way. We can trust them to do the rest."
John Holt
"In the end, the secret to learning is so simple: Think only about whatever you love. Follow it, do it, dream about it...and it will hit you: learning was there all the time, happening by itself." -Grace Llewellyn
"What we want to see is the child in pursuit of knowledge, not knowledge in pursuit of the child."
George Bernard Shaw
Real, natural learning is in the living. It's in the observing, the questioning, the examining, the pondering, the analyzing, the watching, the reading, the DO-ing, the living, the breathing, the loving, the JOY. It's in the joy. ~Anne Ohman
"How could youth better learn to live than by at once trying the experiment of living?" -Henry D. Thoreau