Made by Dennis Leather, a member of Vixen Films, this is a film of two typical days in the life of the Smithy Moor Playgroup, Stocksbridge.  It shows the various activities of the children from their arrival to their departure. The film begins showing the Mission Hall where the playgroup takes place.  Children arrive with their mothers.  The narration gives an account of how the group was set up in 1967, with Mrs Rain as secretary and Mrs Mills as Treasurer, and how it is run.  The children...

Made by Dennis Leather, a member of Vixen Films, this is a film of two typical days in the life of the Smithy Moor Playgroup, Stocksbridge.  It shows the various activities of the children from their arrival to their departure. The film begins showing the Mission Hall where the playgroup takes place.  Children arrive with their mothers.  The narration gives an account of how the group was set up in 1967, with Mrs Rain as secretary and Mrs Mills as Treasurer, and how it is run.  The children and helpers get the toys out of the storage hut in the yard.  The children go off with their chosen toys.  The narration gives the names of those organising the playgroup.  One child, Andrew, has a snack while others get the toys.  Mrs Bradbury and Mrs Petal are in charge.  Then the children are sitting in a classroom, each wearing a different coloured badge.  There are celebrations for the birthday of one of the children, Keith.  Mrs Wilson, area supervisor, leads the children in ‘action rhymes,’ where the children enact the rhyme using their hands and feet.  (At this point the sound breaks off). They then have a painting class, followed by a plastic mug of milk.  The children carry on with more ‘action rhymes’.  The helper gets one of the girls up at the front to show the class, and then they play with the toys.  They also play a game where they all lay on the floor.  They have a small trampoline and slide, and rocking horses.  The playgroup does collective jumping up and down and plays with plasticine.  The helpers and the children put away the toys into boxes and back into the storage garage.   They then go around in a circle holding hands outside, before the parents come to collect the children. Next day it is the same procedure: children and parents arriving.  Some children play with building blocks, others play with buckets and spades in a sand pit, and others with plasticine.   Afterwards they wash their hands and again they get their mug of milk.  They also get a biscuit before again playing with the toys.  One small girl has set up a toy kitchen.  Again they do some action rhymes and then return to the toys.  Then they put the toys away again and go around in a circle holding hands before being collected by their mothers. The end of the film features a Christmas party.  It is snowing outside, and inside, the children sit wearing their paper hats.  They do some action rhymes and then collect presents from an unconvincing Santa Claus.  They all look a bit bemused by the whole affair. End Credits: Piano accompaniment Mrs P Barrow Commentary by Les Walker Produced by Dennis Leather The End