Group visit · Story
Group visit in Antioch: a visit described
Not a review - a description. Here is roughly how an hour goes.
It works as a reward trip, an end of term outing, or the indoor half of a day that has an outdoor half somewhere else.
Coming in from Antioch with more than one child, the useful thing to know is that the room does not need to be rationed - there is more than one thing to do at the same time.
Walking in
For a class group the appeal is that the activity explains itself. No briefing, no equipment to hand out, no rules that take ten minutes to teach.
Teachers get an activity where children take turns without being told to, because the machines and the cars enforce turns by existing in limited numbers.
The middle of the visit
Group visits are worth arranging in advance so the centre knows how many are coming and when - a call does it.
Tell a nervous child what is going to happen in the order it will happen. Surprise is the thing they mind, not the activity.
The last ten minutes
It works as a reward trip, an end of term outing, or the indoor half of a day that has an outdoor half somewhere else.
For a class group the appeal is that the activity explains itself. No briefing, no equipment to hand out, no rules that take ten minutes to teach.
What sticks
Teachers get an activity where children take turns without being told to, because the machines and the cars enforce turns by existing in limited numbers.
Let the child choose what to do first even when it is the thing you would have chosen last. The order matters less than the choosing.
Questions parents ask
Can school groups visit?
Call ahead and arrange it: +1 (615) 968-4925 or info@newlife-entertainment.com.
Is it educational?
Working an arm on levers is hand eye coordination, cause and effect and patience, whatever you call it on the form.
Where is New Life Entertainment?
Two centres: 433 Opry Mills Drive, Nashville TN 37214, and 8111 Concord Mills Blvd, Concord NC 28027.
How do I get in touch?
By phone on +1 (424) 387-6232 or +1 (615) 968-4925, or by e-mail at info@newlife-entertainment.com.
Planning your visit in Antioch
Parents from Antioch tend to ask the same first question: how long will this hold their attention. Long enough to be worth the drive, and short enough to leave while they still want more.
Two shorter visits teach a child more than one long one. The second time they already know what they want to try, and that is when the good part starts.
Take the photographs early. The best ones happen in the first fifteen minutes, before anybody is tired.
For a Antioch family the trip works best folded into something else - the shopping that was happening anyway, a birthday that needed a venue, a Saturday that needed a plan.
The practical details
- XCAV ZONE — 433 Opry Mills Drive, Nashville TN 37214: four child-operated machines over a ball pit.
- ICE PARK — 8111 Concord Mills Blvd, Concord NC 28027: a real rink with bumper cars on the ice.
- Opening hours — 10:00 AM to 8:00 PM Monday to Saturday, 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM on Sunday.
- Phone — +1 (424) 387-6232 · +1 (615) 968-4925
- E-mail — info@newlife-entertainment.com
Anything time critical is worth a phone call first: hours are 10:00 AM to 8:00 PM Monday to Saturday and 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM on Sunday.