Children apparently need 3 hours of physical activity every day. That’s a LOT of running around and makes a structured physical activity class like Tumble Tots all the more appealing. By their very nature, a lot of the physical classes on the market cater for older babies and toddlers. Tumble Tots, however, takes little ones from 6 months and their five stage programme goes right through until they’re 7. Mini Mumbler falls into the Walking-2 Years bracket so we went along to the Wilmslow class for this Review.
The class is held in the Leisure Centre so there’s a large car park you can use. It gets really busy though so get there a bit early if you can. I’ve always got a space but have sometimes had to drive round and hover with intent….Parking is a flat charge of £3 (cash or card accepted) but that gets refunded at Reception when you hand in your ticket.
The class is led by the lovely Megan who’s full of infectious enthusiasm and energy. I’m always impressed by the number of Tumble Tots staff at a class – usually around 5 – all of whom will give you a really warm welcome and, amazingly, seem to remember all the little ones names! I’m at a loss as to how they manage that given I struggle to remember my own some days… We’d had a busy few weeks so hadn’t been for a while but the first lady we met greeted Mini Mumbler by name and immediately put him at ease, even managing to prise him away from my leg to do a backwards roll, much to his initial horror and subsequent elation!
The structure of the class is perfect for the age group – free play and circle time are mixed together and the class finishes with the all important sticker which Mini Mumbler has been parading proudly ever since (much to his big sister’s annoyance!) The children are free to do as much or as little as they want and there’s absolutely no pressure to use the equipment as intended or to take part in circle time (Mini Mumbler isn’t big on circle time, preferring to run round the room waving at me from time to time as I sit and sing nursery rhymes to myself). He’s also a bit of a cheat, starting out on the equipment before sneaking off and walking around it to the fun part at the end (backward roll, bar swings, tunnel etc). I was amazed at the progress Mini Mumbler made even during this one class – there was an uphill tunnel which he wouldn’t go near to begin with but with a bit of encouragement from me and the Tumble Tots staff, by the end he was running over and climbing through it on his own, finding it hilarious.
If one of your incentives for going to a baby or toddler class is to meet other local mums, Tumble Tots is a good bet. The format of the classes means there’s plenty of time to get to know each other as your little ones roll around and I’ve had some lovely chats with both other mums and the Tumble Tots staff. If you try it out on a day Mini Mumbler is there, please come and say hello!
Tumble Tots Macclesfield and Wilmslow runs classes from Tuesday-Friday and monthly Sunday classes. For more information and to book check out the Tumble Tots website , their Facebook Page , give Megan a call on 07814 020095 or email her at megan.jackson@tumbletots.com.
We were invited to write this review by Tumble Tots but the views (and Mini Mumbler’s excitement) are all our (and his) own.
