Secret garden
This inspirational project is a collaborative venture with Birmingham Repertory Theatre involving four Telford schools - Haughton, Southall, Dawley Primary and Ladygrove Primary.
All the children involved went to see a production of the Secret Garden play in Birmingham at the end of 2010 and returned to see what they could make of their own gardens back in school. Shropshire Wildlife Trust has been running habitat and sensory days and getting children to think about wildlife corridors running between the schools.
Environmental artists are helping the schools develop their grounds in imaginative ways and the project will culminate in a storytelling festival on July 7th at Dawley Park.
This project is funded by the Telford Culture Zone.
Wildwoods
Two Telford schools, one urban and one rural, enjoyed a week's outdoor education together in March 2011. Children from St Lawrence Primary, Preston-on-the-Weald Moors and St Luke's Catholic Primary explored habitats at St Lawrence's and took part in a sensory day at St Lukes.
Next they had the chance to get involved in forest school activities at the Ercall nature reserve and scavenger hunts and orienteering at Granville nature reserve. The final day was spent at the Ercall, with a team challenge, musical instrument making and a campfire.
Interaction between the schools was a very positive feature of the week and the teachers are planning to keep this going in other ways.
This project was funded by the Telford Culture Zone.
Mary Webb Young Journalists Club
A group of Year 7 and Year 8 children took part in a six-week journalism project, exploring their local area as part of the Life Stories project.
Shifting Sands
Six secondary schools took part in sessions at Wood Lane nature reserve recently, exploring weather and climate, collecting data to assess man’s impact on the environment and looking at how they can live waste-free lives. An open day in September highlighted the unique learning experience that Wood Lane can offer, as recent testimonies can vouch for:
This was the first time I’ve brought a group of pupils to Wood Lane and worked with Shropshire Wildlife Trust. The help and co-operation I’ve received has been exemplary. I hope to be able to repeat the experience in the future.
Ian Soden, Lakelands School
Just wanted to say a big thank you to all the staff who have helped prepare and deliver the Shifting Sands programme to our diploma students. We really enjoyed our visits - the highlight for the students was definitely the trailer ride around the quarry and landfill site! The course was very well planned and clearly structured and delivered. The students were able to collect lots of useful data that they can now start to use in their write up. Once again, thank you very much and I will be in touch regarding future visits.
Diane Mallison, Bishop Heber School
Throughout the project Shropshire Wildlife Trust has been able to use Wood Lane to stimulate discussion about the natural world and how human activity can affect it, hopefully inspiring the next generation of decision makers to value the environment. For more information contact Helen Trotman (01743 284297).
The Shifting Sands project is funded by the Aggregates Levy Sustainability fund.
Darwin's worms
This popular project, funded by the Darwin Community Arts Fund celebrates the link between Charles Darwin, Shropshire and earthworms, while encouraging young children to get their hands dirty and to recycle their waste.
We provided 50 nurseries across the county with a free wormery and education pack, plus advice and support from Shropshire Master Composters. Thanks to the support of Telford and Wrekin Council's Find Your Talent programme we also gave away a further 25 wormeries to nursery schools in Wellington. Many nurseries are now going on to create vegetable gardens in order to use the products from their wormeries.
Download our nursery education pack, which includes everything you need to know about worms and how to care for them. For ideas on worm-inspired art, drama and music activities download our worm art pack.
"The children have thoroughly enjoyed caring for and learning all about the worms. We have been using the ‘worm wee’ to fertilise the vegetables and flowers we are growing in our nature garden, it really works!" Noah's Ark Nursery, Newport.
Primary Worms
Download a special worm pack for primary schools here.
For further information contact Helen Trotman or call her on 01743 284297.
Wrekin World of Writing
"I’m going to come up here with my dad on Saturday." Lawley Primary School pupil.
This successful project gave 120 children from four Telford schools the chance to take part in a week's activities on the Wrekin thanks to funding from the Telford Culture Zone.
An Iron Age re-enactment group showed the children around the Wrekin hillfort and demonstrated how people lived there 2,000 years ago. Stories were told of feuding giants and the last stand of the Cornovii tribe.
The children did their bit to look after the hill by joining the Wrekin Forest Volunteers to help with coppicing trees and other conservation activities.
All these wonderful experiences were used as inspiration for their own, personal interpretation of the Wrekin. Stories, poems, plays and diaries were shared around a campfire on the last day.
The children's outdoor activities helped them achieve the John Muir Award,designed to nurture a sense of pride and responsibility for their local wild places.
"The whole process and activity week has been an amazing experience for the school staff, pupils and parents." Carol McQuiggan, Headteacher, Lawley Primary School.
Viva Veolia Youth Rangers
This two-year project, funded by the Veolia Environmental Trust and v the youth volunteering charity, has involved over 200 young people aged 16–19. Each has had the opportunity to experience a ‘wild’ outdoor setting, while learning bushcraft, tool use and wildlife conservation skills through individual and team challenges.
Twelve adventurous teenagers have spent every Wednesday afternoon at the Ercall Nature Reserve. Activities around the campfire have included whittling, shelter building, making bee boxes, wood working and lots of chatting and joking as well as sharing burnt toast and baked beans. They all went home at the end of each day, tired, happy and smelling of woodsmoke.
"Making bee boxes was the best part. The boxes will help the bees and they are very important in our life." Tiffany.
"I have learnt a lot. I have enjoyed my experience as a Youth Ranger very much and would recommend it to my friends." Chris.
