Sprouts: September 24, 2026
Today was a bittersweet one for Sprouts as we said goodbye to two of our Earthkeepers who are heading back home to Singapore. We’re going to miss having them as part of our Thursdays!
Much of the day revolved around plans for a farewell party. The kids got busy creating decorative bunting and making cards for their friends. Of course, party preparations didn’t take over the whole day. There was still plenty of time for imaginative play, storytelling, construction projects in the dig pit, Perler beads, and, naturally, lots of Pokémon talk.
Eventually we headed down to The Flats and made our way to Silly Goose Beach. The river was low again, opening up plenty of rocks for climbing and exploring.
Our two departing Sprouts had one particular request for their last day: one more fossil hunt.
Fossil hunting has been a favourite of theirs, but this one felt a little extra special because most of the other kids decided to come along too. We headed off in a different direction than usual, searching the rocks and seeing what we could find.
We ended up finding something that wasn't exactly a fossil, but was certainly connected to our interest in bones and things from the past: the remains of a goose.
We’ve actually known about this goose for a while, which made it especially interesting to stop and look again. The kids could compare what they were seeing now to what they remembered from before. We noticed how decomposition had changed the remains and what we could see now that the softer parts had rotted away. Returning to the same places again and again gives us opportunities like this that we couldn't really plan for. The landscape changes, things decompose, the river rises and falls, and the kids get to notice those changes for themselves.
Back at the river, another interesting find was waiting for us. One of the girls discovered a live mussel, and everyone crowded in for a closer look. Usually when we find mussel shells, that's all we see, but this time we could actually see part of the living animal poking out from inside its shell!
After our adventure, we headed back to the dome for a special treat to say farewell to our friends. Then we finished off our last day together with some time at the park.
It was a pretty fitting goodbye: making things for friends, playing together, exploring familiar places, and squeezing in one last fossil hunt. We wish our two Sprouts a wonderful trip home to Singapore. We’ll miss you!
Thanks for a great day, Sprouts!
