Chapter 3 – Ensuring a successful visit

Every successful visit starts with a warm welcome and ends with a friendly goodbye. A good first impression as the group arrives will set you in good stead for the rest of the day.  Likewise, at the end of the day it is important that time is put aside to ensure that all questions are answered before the group leaves. In this chapter, we will cover methods to ensure that any visits run as smoothly as possible.

Start of the day

welcoming the visitors: 

At the beginning of the day, you should introduce yourself and your farm. Gain the trust of the visitors and ensure that they feel at ease enough to be able to ask questions during their visit. Go over the plans for the day and explain where the toilets and hand washing facilities are. You could also consider starting the day with an engaging and exciting activity like going to see the new born lambs.

Getting to know the group:

Get to know the group and try to gauge their level of knowledge by asking if anyone has visited an organic farm before. You might also test their knowledge of farming by asking some simple questions about the types of livestock they expect to see on the farm or what is special about organic farming. If possible, try to memorise the names of the children. If the group is too large, get the children to write their name on sticker, which they can they wear during the day.

Introducing the day: 

Give your group a short overview of the day and detailing what your plans are. discuss health and safety, explain the rules of the farm and why it is important to follow the rules. It is important that children realise that they are visiting a working farm, that it is not a playground and that the livestock are different from domestic animals.

Add. Inf. Checklist Nr. 2_ rules for the farm

End of the day

Feedback and questions

Ensure that you allow time for feedback and questions at the end of the day. Ask the children if they enjoyed their day. It is important to test what they have learnt, as this will enable the children to reinforce their memories. You can do this by asking questions such as:

  • What do you remember from today?
  • What was your favourite activity from today and why?
  • Tell me one fact that you have learnt about organic farming.

By asking these questions, you will also be able to reflect upon how the day went from you. Which activities were memorable to the group and which were not? what worked well and what could be improved next time?

Add. Inf. Worksheet Nr.4_methods for feedback

What are cookies?

Text files that websites saves on your computer or mobile device when you visit the site. It enables the website to remember your actions and preferences (such as login, language, font size and other display preferences) over a period of time, so you don't have to keep re-entering them whenever you come back to the site or browse from one page to another.

By using our website you consent to to the storage of cookies. More information Less information