Food themed rocks given to Ely reception children for their mud kitchen

The reception classes of the Lantern School in Ely have been gifted over 100 rocks painted with a food theme by the local rock painting group Ely Rock Eels.

The idea came from group member Sarah Follett, who said: "I thought that it would be a fun idea for the children to have rocks painted as food to use in the mud kitchen, to take their imaginative play further.

"Resources for schools are so restricted these days, so it is great to be able to help out in a small way".

Rocks were painted by several group members to represent all types of food, from the main food groups such as fruit and vegetables and protein, to store cupboard items and fun things like cakes and ice creams.

They were presented to the teachers of the reception classes, who said "the rocks will be a fantastic addition to our mud kitchen and the children will really enjoy playing with them".

The group, which can be found on Facebook, is run by 2019 Ely Hero Awards community champion Fleur Patten.

She said: "Ely Rock Eels thoroughly enjoyed painting these food rocks for the Lantern School.

"We usually hide our rocks for strangers to find, but this event was heart warming to know our audience and for us to know that the food rocks will be enjoyed by reception children for years to come because rocks are resilient."