In February a falconer from the Raptor Foundation came to visit the reception children. Each class went into the large hall for an hour to listen to the falconer talk about the 5 birds of prey he had brought to show them. There was one Harris Hawk and 4 owls; a White Faced Eagle Owl, a Tawny Owl, a Barn Owl and an African Spotted Eagle Owl.

After telling the children facts about each owl, such as what they eat and when they hunt, the falconer showed us the eggs for each bird and we could compare the size of the egg to the fully grown bird. The children also held an eagle’s feather and waved it up and down to feel how strong it was.

There was a flying display by the Barn owl and then each child put on the falconer’s protective glove and held the Tawny Owl. They had the opportunity to stroke the owl too.

The falconer commented on how well behaved the children were from both classes.