Building creativity at Bairn Banter
As the summer holidays draw to a close, families attending the Bairn Banter group take a moment to reflect and reminisce about the Saturday mornings spent with family and friends, and the fun experiences had here in Carsphairn this summer.
We have spent the summer soaking up the sunshine in the Lagwyne Hall garden; practicing our new found hula hoop skills; making suncatchers, picking fresh peas; making ‘perfume potions’ from sweet fragrant flowers and herbs; building sandcastles and tunnels in the sand pit; sampling the bountiful freshly grown strawberries from our communal vegetable patch; enjoying birthday celebrations for both the young and the old as well as a selection of fantastic forest activities situated at the Heart of the Glen woodlands. How lucky our children are to grow, thrive, play and learn in the Glenkens!
During the summer break, the group joined forces with Carsphairn Community Woodland, embarking on a Citizen Science event in a special collaboration between the two groups. We took part in the Big Butterfly Count 2026 on a very warm, yet drizzly Scottish summer’s morning. Children of all ages were striding over tussocks, ducking under branches and marching between the lengthy fireweed stems, stopping to forage the occasional wild raspberry, in search of the very reclusive butterflies, which were hiding from the uninviting weather conditions. With the hunt proving to be a wee bit scarce, we took to the playpark, then back to base to begin creating very our own butterfly wings and masks from cardboard, wool, plant-based glitter, foraged flowers and leaves and coloured pens.
Bairn Banter also attended the Carsphairn Community Woodland Open Day, where we offered a range of stimulating activities for children of all ages, as well as working together to create a fabulous tapestry of plants and flowers, all woven into our giant hazel loom.
Back at the Bairn Banter HQ in Lagwyne Hall, many attendees have particularly enjoyed learning through play, as we explore Science Technologies Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) activities. These have run alongside our fun play sessions, providing the older children with an educational element. Following on from this successful introduction to a new learning aspect, we plan to continue this during our play sessions, since there is such a wealth of learning opportunities to be had!
Bairn Banter is delighted to introduce our new Lego Play Sessions taking place on the first Saturday of the month from 10am at Lagwyne Hall.
At Bairn Banter, the children and their families are at the heart of the group and we encourage each individual to be involved with our session planning, purchase of resources, snack choices, activities and events to take place. Reflecting on the children’s requests and parents’ suggestions, the group has taken this fantastic feedback on board and we plan to offer more Lego activities.
The volunteering staff at Bairn Banter have managed to source a bulk amount of Lego from a local supplier who refurbishes and sells a wide range of Lego sets in Dumfries & Galloway and across the country. By purchasing second hand resources, the children have learned about considering our environmental impact and footprint when purchasing toys, about sensible money management, saving some of our pennies and about working locally.
Upcoming events
As we move forward into the autumn and winter months, the group has a busy few weeks ahead and with two of our major events taking place alongside our regular weekly sessions at Lagwyne Hall and the monthly Forest Learning Sessions, held on the last Saturday of the month.
Carsphairn Community Council and Bairn Banter are holding a Bake Sale which will take place on Saturday 19th September, where local stall holders will be offering crafts, cards and local produce. Bairn Banter will hold a sales table for donations of bric-a-brac, clothes, books and produce, as well as sweet treats, cakes and refreshments to enjoy in the lounge, where we invite visitors to enjoy the pop up café environment.
All donations and funds raised will go towards Bairn Banter’s free children’s Halloween Party, taking place on Saturday 31st October from 4pm – 6pm.
If anyone would like more information about any of these events or would like to reach out to Bairn Banter, please contact Melissa via email at: bairnbanter@outlook.com.
Melissa Ade, Bairn Banter Coordinator