In Year One the children are learning about ‘Sculpture’ in Art and Design. To enrich this unit a visit to Henshaw’s Arts and Crafts Centre in Knaresborough was organised. The artists who work and exhibit at the centre are all blind or visually impaired.  

When we arrived at the centre we split into three groups. Each group had the opportunity to take part in a multi-sensory workshop, listen to a story read in Braille and look around the various workshops; sculpture, jewellery, textiles, papermaking, woodwork and music, where we were able to see the artists at work and question them on their expertise. The children reacted with empathy towards the artists and were unfazed by their difficulties. Following the morning’s activities we had a picnic lunch in the beautiful sensory gardens. It was a thoroughly enjoyable experience for all of us, which inspired the children to produce some excellent pieces of writing and good art work which has been used as a basis for further work in school.