Arimo
Parents Group
West Hackney Recreation Ground
Evering Road N16 7QA
What is Arimo?
Every Saturday morning I collaborate with a parents group called Arimo.
Arimo is an outdoor parents group that started in 2018 thanks to the efforts of Valentina Franzetti and Federico Bernasconi.
They were looking for their children to play with other Italian children and wanted to meet weekly. Valentina suggested to the other parents that I became the group leader after coming to one of my l Grillo Parlante sessions and we have been working together since then.
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Arimo started as an indoor group but during the pandemic we moved outdoors to the beautiful West Hackney recreation ground and we decided that it was much better for the children to be in an environment surrounded by nature.
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How it works
This group is ONLY for children who can understand the Italian language.
Children are divided by age group:
GROUP 1 : 3 to 4 (10.15am to 11am) 6 places available
GROUP 2 : 5 to 6 (11am to 11.45am) 1 place available
GROUP 3: 6 to 7 (11.45am to 12.30pm) 1 place available
Every session lasts 45 minutes
The sessions run from September to December and from March to July. During these months we follow the school holidays.
Payment is per term and may vary depending on the term length.
We meet with any kind of weather : rain, frost, sun and clouds therefore appropriate clothes are a must!
Parents stay in the park while I play with the children and they each have full responsibility of their own child.
Children must bring a bottle of water and food is not allowed during the session.
New participant will have one of the parent to sit with them the first session but this may be happening more depending on the child's level on confidence.
You can't have a trial session because children take time to adapt to any situation, therefore one time will not be enough for you or you child to judge the sessions. You are welcome to come to the park, sit somewhere nearby with your child and see how I work with the children and decide if you want to take part at the group in the next available term.
Next step
Arimo is looking for new bookings from now. All the services will commence the week of the 9th of September.
A deposit of £20 not refundable will be required to ensure your place.
Please go to the get in touch session and send me a message with Arimo in the subject , I will come back to you as soon as possible.
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Valentina
I’ve been speaking Italian to my child from birth, in the hope that he would become fully bilingual.Unfortunately my strategy only half worked, as he would understand Italian really well, but he’d never utter a word.The ‘all Italian’ environment created by Arimo has greatly supported and improved his language skills.He can now fluently converse in Italian! This has worked wonders for his relationship with his italian relatives and, of course, for his self-confidence.In addition to this, he has fully embraced his dual identity and he’s now proud of his ‘otherness’.Serenella is a detailed-oriented, dependable, energetic, creative and positive individual. She’s able to captivate the children’s attention with her unique teaching style which intertwines fun with language learning.
Tess
Arimo is more than a language-focussed playgroup. It's a thriving community of children and adults. It allows our kids to play and make friends in Italian. They learn about the culture and use the language directly, rather than being taught.
Our children are born abroad from a single Italian parent. Arimo allows them to embrace their dual or triple identity as bilingual and multicultural people.
Serenella's approach is child focused, she is affectionate and caring. All the kids love her very much. At early development stage, playing is the best learning conduit and keeps them motivated and happy.
The location and format is allowing the formation of a community beyond the 45 min of 'class'. Join us!
Dorothea
Arimo is the kind of opportunity you really truly do not want your child to miss out on.
Children are taught by Serenella through creative play, song, storytelling, nature discovery and so much more in the gorgeous West Hackney Recreation Grounds.
The group is run by committed bi-lingual parents who have successfully built a wonderful inclusive community for their children (and for the lucky parents).
If you don’t speak Italian don’t worry, the community it’s not just for Italian speakers. I honestly cannot recommend highly enough.
Stella
We love Serenella’s class! It has enabled our 4yo son Bruno to build connections with other Italian children in the area and associate the Italian language with fun and play - which is key to encourage him to speak in Italian more.
It has also nurtured his sense of belonging to another culture in addition to his English roots. Serenella always leads great activities that nurture physical development and creative thinking.
Our son Bruno’s favourite moment is when Serenella teaches them about making art!
Vania
My kids are now 6 and 7 years old and they have been going to the playgroup since when they were very young.
Serenella has always been able to bring in the group new ideas for activities that would engage them so they have fun while talking and singing in Italian.