Tony’s letters about his adventures sailing across the world in the Royal Navy, along with his quieter life in retirement, have captured the imaginations and hearts of pre-school children and staff at Little Barn Owls Nursery and Farm School in Horsham, West Sussex.
They have been exchanging letters with the 97-year-old since November, with children becoming fascinated about his time at sea and enjoying sharing with him what they are doing.
The children were put in touch with Tony by the nursery’s farm school leader, who is also his carer. Tony visited the nursery a few years ago and has always enjoyed hearing about the children and animals. He is currently isolating because of the Covid-19 pandemic and unable to have many visitors, so staff thought writing to him would bring many mutual benefits.
‘We thought it’d be a lovely idea to give him a little piece of the outside and normality and for him to also share his experiences because he has an amazing history,’ says pedagogical co-ordinator Kerry Smith. ‘We showed the children a photograph of Tony wearing all his medals when we were discussing Remembrance Day, which sparked lots of questions.’
One child commented how soldiers are ‘superheroes’, and another liked the rainbow colours of the ribbons on his medals.
‘DEAR SPECIAL CHILDREN’
The children sent Tony a letter with some of their questions and poppy pictures that they had created. The pictures are now on his mantelpiece and the children were ‘delighted’ when he responded to them with more information about himself – from the names of his two grandchildren to the seven fish in his pond, and more detail about being in the Navy.
Ms Smith says his fondness for the children is shown by how he always starts his letters with ‘Dear Special Children’.
In his first letter, he wrote, ‘I was a good sailor which is why I have lots of medals from different countries’, adding, ‘I sailed on the water – the Atlantic Ocean and the Bay of Biscay and all the way to Russia (which was very cold because of the ice).’
A practitioner shared the letter with a small group of children, and during the week they studied a globe and maps to enable them to visualise where Tony sailed during World War Two. ‘Wow, it’s a picture of the world! Where does Tony live?’ asked Elowen. ‘I think he lives in England.’
Tony also sent pictures of the warships that he sailed on, called HMS Wild Goose and HMS Tyler. The children enjoyed looking at the pictures of ships – one a painting of the ship and the other of plans detailing the side and deck. They inspired lots of comments, such as:
- ‘It’s got two numbers 4, 5’ (referring to the Wild Goose’s pennant number).
- ‘It’s got a steering wheel.’
- ‘Rockets come out of there.’
- ‘I wonder if there’s a submarine?’
EXPLORING LIFE AT SEA
Studying the ship pictures and maps made the children think about what it must have been like to live on a ship. Some children stood up and pretended what it would feel like when the sea was rough by rocking from side to side.
The children wrote to Tony to find out more. Max wanted to know if Tony played on the ship, while Arabella asked where he slept and whether he had a bunk bed.
They were intrigued to learn from Tony’s responding letter that he actually slept in a hammock while on the ship and that it ‘rolled’ with the ship in bad weather. It made them wonder what it was like to lie in a hammock, especially if the boat was moving.
Tony also informed the children that the ship had a steering wheel on the ‘bridge’ and that there was a big funnel. When they were not fighting the enemy, they would play music and sing songs about sailors.
MAKING A HAMMOCK
The children are now working on creating their own hammock to put in the nursery’s Zen Garden.
Staff are researching how to make a hammock with a ‘clew’, like they would have in WWII, which they hope to make with the children, using a wooden frame and weaving. The children are drawing up hammock plans and will then create small-scale hammocks and practise weaving before making a big one together.
They have also researched what kind of fabric is best to construct the hammock.
GETTING CREATIVE
Inspired by the ship pictures, the children started to draw designs of their own ships. Edward noted there is a ‘point at the front’ of his drawing of a boat, which he told staff ‘crashes into the other boats’.
Some of the children decided to turn their drawings into decorations for Tony to put on his Christmas tree. Children also made stained-glass-effect pictures on acetate as gifts for Tony. These are now fastened to a window in his home.
THE JOY OF LETTER-WRITING
Staff have set up a quiet area in the nursery dedicated to writing letters to Tony. There is a scrapbook with all their correspondence for them to reflect on, and a lightbox where they can trace pictures of boats.
Children are experiencing the importance and joy of letter-writing. They are reciting letters to staff for them to scribe to Tony and mark-making, including writing their own names and ‘Dear Tony’.
One day, Max was absorbed in the writing area and told a staff member that he was writing ‘a special note for Tony’. When asked what it said, he replied, ‘It’s just for Tony to read. He will know what it says.’
ONGOING INTERESTS
The children’s interest in designing and building ships continued into the new year. They have started to study small models of boats in more detail, inspecting how they are formed, their shapes and what is included in them. They have been making their own small ship models and aim eventually to create a big model of a boat.
Staff have also located a veteran’s website which has a biography of Tony and lots of photographs that he took while in the Navy. They are waiting for another letter from Tony and plan to share the new photographs with the children to spark further conversations.
PAST AND PRESENT
‘Writing to Tony is giving the children a glimpse into the past and the history of our country, as well as building empathy,’ says Ms Smith. ‘It is supporting their speech, language and writing skills but in a purposeful way. They are very invested in writing to Tony and wanting to know about his life.
‘To have that connection with an older person, especially right now during the pandemic when they are not able to go out and about and meet people, is lovely because it is helping them to still experience things happening outside of nursery. We have our fingers crossed that one day soon Tony will be able to come and visit the children.’
BOOK CORNER
Jack and the Flumflum Tree by Julia Donaldson and David Roberts
Join Jack for an adventure on the high sea in this rhyming adventure.
A Sailing Boat in the Sky by Quentin Blake
Isobel and Nicholas discover a strange wreck and set sail on a humanitarian mission around the world.
The Mousehole Cat by Antonia Barber and Nicola Bayley
A story of bravery, sacrifice and companionship inspired by Cornish legend.
Boats by Byron Barton
A simple picture book showcasing lots of boats from tugs to ferries.
Busy Boats by Susan Steggall
Discover the many vessels that can be found in a harbour, from fishing boats, ferries and yachts to lifeboats, freight ships and ocean liners.
Brilliant Boats by Tony Mitton and Ant Parker
Playful art, animal sailors and a picture dictionary are in this colourful book.
The Jolly Postman by Janet and Allan Ahlberg
The Jolly Postman delivers cards and letters to various fairytale characters, including Goldilocks’ apology to the three bears, and Jack’s postcard to the giant.
Meerkat Mail by Emily Gravett
Sunny the meerkat leaves his enormous family in the Kalahari desert and sends postcards from his travels.
Dear Juno by Soyung Pak
Juno’s grandmother writes in Korean, and Juno writes in drawings, but that doesn’t mean they can’t exchange letters.