Associated Teachers TV Programme Using the Environment: Back to Nature
Subtitles
Associated Teachers’ TV programme
Using the Environment: Back to Nature
0001 10:00:11:01 10:00:13:00
(narrator) Pupils
from a Dorset school
0002 10:00:13:00 10:00:15:04
are taking part
in a Guardianship scheme,
0003 10:00:15:04 10:00:17:14
which involves
building up a relationship
0004 10:00:17:14 10:00:19:10
with a local National Trust site.
0005 10:00:19:10 10:00:22:18
The teachers find that, along
with learning about the environment,
0006 10:00:22:18 10:00:25:12
there's much more to be gained
from this partnership.
0007 10:00:25:12 10:00:28:05
- Ammonite.
- An ammonite. Well done.
0008 10:00:29:11 10:00:31:12
(narrator)
The Golden Cap Guardianship
0009 10:00:31:12 10:00:33:16
links St Catherine's Primary School
in Bridport
0010 10:00:33:16 10:00:36:12
and a National Trust
site on the Dorset coast.
0011 10:00:36:12 10:00:40:04
It's a yearly programme
that involves the whole school.
0012 10:00:40:17 10:00:44:17
OK, children, we'll just pop
these things in the back of the bus.
0013 10:00:44:17 10:00:48:06
We wanted to get the children
out into the environment,
0014 10:00:48:06 10:00:50:01
but didn't feel we knew
0015 10:00:50:01 10:00:51:15
that much about it ourselves,
0016 10:00:51:15 10:00:53:12
and really wanted to use experts,
0017 10:00:53:12 10:00:55:06
so the children could benefit
0018 10:00:55:06 10:00:57:19
from people who knew
what they were talking about,
0019 10:00:57:19 10:01:01:22
and having the Golden Cap estate
right on the doorstep is wonderful.
0020 10:01:04:00 10:01:06:11
(man) They use the area
to get to know
0021 10:01:06:11 10:01:08:11
the landscape and local geography.
0022 10:01:08:11 10:01:12:04
They get to know a National Trust
property by doing repeat visits,
0023 10:01:12:04 10:01:15:18
so the idea is that
it's mutually beneficial
0024 10:01:15:18 10:01:18:14
between the National Trust
and the local schools.
0025 10:01:18:14 10:01:20:05
Orange peel...
0026 10:01:21:01 10:01:22:23
Tape measure.
0027 10:01:22:23 10:01:24:24
Metre sticks.
0028 10:01:25:17 10:01:28:09
(Helen) They really work
very hard for us,
0029 10:01:28:09 10:01:31:08
and they try and tie in with us
as much as they can.
0030 10:01:31:08 10:01:34:17
They find some
fantastic resources for us.
0031 10:01:34:17 10:01:38:13
It just makes it all
so much more real for the children.
0032 10:01:38:13 10:01:42:20
They're just learning so much more
actually doing it
0033 10:01:42:20 10:01:44:20
than just being told it.
0034 10:01:46:01 10:01:48:01
We can both get out of it
what we need.
0035 10:01:48:01 10:01:52:09
They want to teach the children
about looking after the environment
0036 10:01:52:09 10:01:55:20
and we want to teach the children
the national curriculum.
0037 10:01:55:20 10:01:59:03
We're going to start here,
where the source of the river is,
0038 10:01:59:03 10:02:01:10
follow it down to the sea.
0039 10:02:03:19 10:02:07:07
(Helen) This term
we're studying water and rivers.
0040 10:02:07:07 10:02:10:16
The children have looked in books
and seen on the internet
0041 10:02:10:16 10:02:13:16
rivers and their sources
and their mouths,
0042 10:02:13:16 10:02:15:22
and what happens to them
at different points
0043 10:02:15:22 10:02:17:23
and what use man makes of rivers.
0044 10:02:17:23 10:02:21:01
But I always feel it's important,
if we possibly can,
0045 10:02:21:01 10:02:25:08
to actually give them
real experience of a river.
0046 10:02:25:08 10:02:28:10
(narrator) And that's exactly
the point of today's visit,
0047 10:02:28:10 10:02:30:14
when the children
will conduct a survey
0048 10:02:30:14 10:02:32:10
of one of the site's streams.
0049 10:02:34:17 10:02:37:13
What we're going to do is,
we'll start with group one.
0050 10:02:37:13 10:02:40:06
We're going to measure
the width of the stream,
0051 10:02:40:06 10:02:42:05
the depth of the water,
0052 10:02:42:05 10:02:44:02
and the speed of the stream.
0053 10:02:44:02 10:02:47:06
Now we're just measuring the
width... where the water is.
0054 10:02:47:06 10:02:48:21
That's it.
0055 10:02:50:06 10:02:52:10
The width here is 57cm.
0056 10:02:52:10 10:02:57:14
Right, now you need to
put this ruler by 40cm... OK?
0057 10:02:57:14 10:03:00:24
And then shout out what
the depth of the water is there.
0058 10:03:00:24 10:03:03:22
- Five and a half.
- Five and a half centimetres.
0059 10:03:03:22 10:03:06:24
Here on the estate we haven't
really got any major rivers,
0060 10:03:06:24 10:03:09:05
but we have got small streams.
0061 10:03:09:05 10:03:13:15
So what we decided to do was walk
from the source of the stream
0062 10:03:13:15 10:03:17:18
out to where it meets the sea, and
look at the stream as it goes down.
0063 10:03:17:18 10:03:20:02
Look at erosion and deposition,
0064 10:03:20:02 10:03:24:09
how the width and the speed of the
water changes and things like that.
0065 10:03:24:09 10:03:26:10
- Who's got the orange peel?
- I have.
0066 10:03:26:10 10:03:28:14
You need just one piece
of orange peel.
0067 10:03:28:14 10:03:31:13
What you need to do is
shout "Start" very loudly
0068 10:03:31:13 10:03:36:06
and then shout "Stop" very loudly
when it goes past the one metre.
0069 10:03:36:06 10:03:37:23
OK?
0070 10:03:37:23 10:03:38:23
Start!
0071 10:03:41:06 10:03:42:06
(child) Stop!
0072 10:03:42:23 10:03:46:04
- (child) 3.65.
- 3.65. Excellent.
0073 10:03:46:04 10:03:47:04
Well done.
0074 10:03:49:08 10:03:52:03
The idea was to get the children
0075 10:03:52:03 10:03:54:21
to follow the source
down to the mouth
0076 10:03:54:21 10:03:58:02
and follow
how the river stream develops.
0077 10:03:59:07 10:04:02:03
(Helen) I was really interested
in getting them to learn
0078 10:04:02:03 10:04:04:04
the geography of the river
0079 10:04:04:04 10:04:06:15
and looking at the geography
of the land around
0080 10:04:06:15 10:04:10:03
and how that influences
the geography of the river.
0081 10:04:10:03 10:04:11:17
(boy) 1 metre 28.
0082 10:04:11:17 10:04:14:00
- (Rob) 1 metre 28.
- (girl) It's about the same.
0083 10:04:15:03 10:04:18:11
(Rob) We tie in our six visits
throughout the year
0084 10:04:18:11 10:04:21:10
to meet some of those requirements
of the curriculum.
0085 10:04:21:10 10:04:25:03
It's devised between what we have
here available as a resource
0086 10:04:25:03 10:04:26:20
and also what the teachers need,
0087 10:04:26:20 10:04:29:10
what they're going to look at
during the school year,
0088 10:04:29:10 10:04:33:07
so they can relate it back
to what they've seen on the trip.
0089 10:04:36:18 10:04:40:14
Engaging with the natural
environment is really essential,
0090 10:04:40:14 10:04:45:14
particularly as young people
have become so disengaged
0091 10:04:45:14 10:04:48:08
with the world around us
and the world that we live in.
0092 10:04:48:08 10:04:52:05
It's really important
that schools provide
0093 10:04:52:05 10:04:55:23
these first-hand practical
opportunities for pupils,
0094 10:04:55:23 10:04:58:12
whether it's visiting
a field-study centre,
0095 10:04:58:12 10:05:03:11
whether it's going to a coastal area
to participate in conservation work.
0096 10:05:03:11 10:05:06:13
By doing this, pupils
are starting to understand
0097 10:05:06:13 10:05:09:23
and to appreciate their impact
0098 10:05:09:23 10:05:13:17
and the human impact
on a natural environment.
0099 10:05:14:13 10:05:18:08
(Rob) There's two ponds here and
they're formed completely naturally.
0100 10:05:18:08 10:05:23:09
If you look round there's hills all
around us and over there as well,
0101 10:05:23:09 10:05:26:07
and the water's forming
from the hills and flowing down
0102 10:05:26:07 10:05:30:08
into the low patch here,
and it's forming this pond.
0103 10:05:30:08 10:05:33:17
This is a fantastic area
for wildlife.
0104 10:05:33:17 10:05:37:07
In the spring and summer there'll be
dragonflies and butterflies
0105 10:05:37:07 10:05:39:09
and all sorts of insects
flying around.
0106 10:05:39:09 10:05:43:08
There'll be lots of things growing
and living in the water as well.
0107 10:05:44:16 10:05:46:06
Throughout the visits
0108 10:05:46:06 10:05:49:15
there's always subliminal messages
and other messages going on
0109 10:05:49:15 10:05:52:16
about rubbish and waste,
0110 10:05:52:16 10:05:56:02
and not dropping litter
and all sorts of things like that,
0111 10:05:56:02 10:06:00:05
and also...
protecting resources like water,
0112 10:06:00:05 10:06:02:00
looking after the woodlands,
0113 10:06:02:00 10:06:05:01
how the area is managed
with farming and things like that,
0114 10:06:05:01 10:06:07:04
and how farming
affects the environment.
0115 10:06:07:04 10:06:10:07
So there's always messages
in the background
0116 10:06:10:07 10:06:12:18
and other things
and messages going on
0117 10:06:12:18 10:06:15:24
that we try and instil in
the children when they're on site.
0118 10:06:18:22 10:06:22:03
Who can tell me from the things
you've learnt in the classroom...
0119 10:06:22:03 10:06:25:15
who can tell me what a bend
in the river like this is called?
0120 10:06:25:15 10:06:27:00
- Do you know?
- A meander.
0121 10:06:27:00 10:06:28:23
A meander. Excellent.
0122 10:06:28:23 10:06:31:02
(Helen) Getting them
used to the environment
0123 10:06:31:02 10:06:33:02
and how important it is
to look after it,
0124 10:06:33:02 10:06:35:02
and knowing
what's on their doorstep,
0125 10:06:35:02 10:06:37:19
cos quite often
they don't go into the countryside.
0126 10:06:37:19 10:06:40:09
Although it's all around them,
they don't visit it.
0127 10:06:40:09 10:06:42:06
(children) Stop!
0128 10:06:42:06 10:06:45:12
And quite often schoolchildren
from the local towns,
0129 10:06:45:12 10:06:48:22
what always amazes us is they don't
come to their local property.
0130 10:06:48:22 10:06:52:24
They'll travel miles, but they don't
explore their local property.
0131 10:06:53:13 10:06:55:00
Oh, careful!
0132 10:06:56:19 10:06:58:21
It's very, very muddy.
0133 10:07:00:01 10:07:04:09
(Helen) These children, this is
their third year of these trips,
0134 10:07:04:09 10:07:06:07
so they know the wardens very well,
0135 10:07:06:07 10:07:08:21
they're very comfortable
in that atmosphere,
0136 10:07:08:21 10:07:12:08
and they're learning things that
are reinforced in the classroom.
0137 10:07:13:23 10:07:15:20
(Rob) They get to know the property,
0138 10:07:15:20 10:07:18:16
which really instils
confidence in them,
0139 10:07:18:16 10:07:21:09
in that it's not a scary place
they're coming to.
0140 10:07:21:09 10:07:25:17
They really get to know the place
and the National Trust wardens,
0141 10:07:25:17 10:07:28:01
and from that
they can ask lots of questions.
0142 10:07:28:01 10:07:32:13
It's that getting to know the class,
the class getting to know the site,
0143 10:07:32:13 10:07:36:09
the repeat visits which makes
Guardianship really, really special.
0144 10:07:43:17 10:07:46:17
Making a commitment
to taking pupils out
0145 10:07:46:17 10:07:48:03
on a regular basis -
0146 10:07:48:03 10:07:52:03
and that's really key, actually,
0147 10:07:52:03 10:07:56:00
that outdoor learning and
education outside the classroom
0148 10:07:56:00 10:07:59:22
isn't a special one-off occasion,
0149 10:07:59:22 10:08:02:16
but it's actually something
0150 10:08:02:16 10:08:05:16
that is a regular part
of curriculum studies,
0151 10:08:05:16 10:08:07:09
and therefore becomes embedded
0152 10:08:07:09 10:08:10:03
in the programmes of study
and in the curriculum.
0153 10:08:15:19 10:08:18:11
OK, let's just wait
at the top of the steps here.
0154 10:08:19:09 10:08:21:13
The children's response varies,
0155 10:08:21:13 10:08:24:02
and sometimes we spend the day
0156 10:08:24:02 10:08:26:08
thinking they aren't
taking any of this in
0157 10:08:26:08 10:08:28:22
and they're just here
having a good time,
0158 10:08:28:22 10:08:31:23
which is absolutely fantastic
because they're out of school
0159 10:08:31:23 10:08:35:22
and learning various different
things out of the classroom.
0160 10:08:35:22 10:08:39:06
On the repeat visits, you'll be
amazed when they come back out...
0161 10:08:39:06 10:08:41:17
I'm always surprised
when they see something else
0162 10:08:41:17 10:08:44:02
and they know about it
and point it out to me,
0163 10:08:44:02 10:08:48:12
and I think, "Well, maybe they were
listening and paying attention."
0164 10:08:48:12 10:08:51:00
OK, so we've made it
down onto the beach.
0165 10:08:51:12 10:08:54:19
So we've followed the stream
from its source
0166 10:08:54:19 10:08:59:03
and now we've walked only
probably about a mile and a half,
0167 10:08:59:03 10:09:01:03
but we've made it down to the beach.
0168 10:09:01:03 10:09:05:00
Who remembers what this
triangular feature was called
0169 10:09:05:00 10:09:06:11
where it comes out?
0170 10:09:06:11 10:09:09:18
- (child) A delta.
- A delta. Well done.
0171 10:09:11:18 10:09:13:23
Education outside the classroom -
visits -
0172 10:09:13:23 10:09:17:20
provide many opportunities
for cross-curricular learning.
0173 10:09:17:20 10:09:23:09
You might, for example,
go to a local field-study centre
0174 10:09:23:09 10:09:28:11
and have the opportunity
to look at plants or insects
0175 10:09:28:11 10:09:30:06
for the science curriculum,
0176 10:09:30:06 10:09:34:12
or you might use the area
for inspiration for art,
0177 10:09:34:12 10:09:38:08
or you might look at geography,
participate in orienteering,
0178 10:09:38:08 10:09:41:06
or you might look at river studies
and ebb and flow,
0179 10:09:41:06 10:09:44:01
which introduces maths
into the equation as well.
0180 10:09:44:01 10:09:46:15
So there's all sorts
of opportunities there
0181 10:09:46:15 10:09:49:11
for real cross-curricular activity.
0182 10:09:49:11 10:09:53:09
This is something
that it's very famous for here.
0183 10:09:53:09 10:09:57:02
It's a fossil. Does anyone know
what sort of creature it is?
0184 10:09:57:02 10:09:58:14
- Yeah?
- Ammonite.
0185 10:09:58:14 10:10:00:18
An ammonite. Well done.
0186 10:10:00:18 10:10:02:16
An ammonite, OK.
0187 10:10:02:16 10:10:07:05
And they were living here
200 million years ago...
0188 10:10:07:05 10:10:10:12
The Guardianship scheme is
fairly accessible to most schools.
0189 10:10:10:12 10:10:13:09
I think there's about 100 schemes
running at the moment.
0190 10:10:13:09 10:10:16:02
It really depends on your locality
0191 10:10:16:02 10:10:18:04
in relation to
a National Trust property.
0192 10:10:18:04 10:10:20:10
That can be countryside
as we have here,
0193 10:10:20:10 10:10:23:20
or it could be a mansion house,
a castle, a garden.
0194 10:10:23:20 10:10:28:02
All sorts of different properties
are running schemes.
0195 10:10:28:02 10:10:33:19
(Martha) If you don't have
access to a Guardianship scheme,
0196 10:10:33:19 10:10:37:24
there are many, many other
organisations and practitioners
0197 10:10:37:24 10:10:41:17
that work
in the outdoor learning sector,
0198 10:10:41:17 10:10:45:03
who will be able to provide you
with either a facility
0199 10:10:45:03 10:10:46:15
or an education officer
0200 10:10:46:15 10:10:49:16
or somebody that would be
able to support schools
0201 10:10:49:16 10:10:54:08
in engaging with the outdoor
environment on a regular basis.
0202 10:10:54:18 10:10:58:14
(boy) We've been there about...
must be about five or six times now.
0203 10:10:58:14 10:11:01:08
It's good because
we learn about the environment
0204 10:11:01:08 10:11:04:05
and how to keep it in working order,
0205 10:11:06:02 10:11:09:12
and how to keep everything
that lives there safe
0206 10:11:09:12 10:11:11:02
and don't pollute the area.
0207 10:11:13:01 10:11:15:16
(girl) It's a good place to do stuff
0208 10:11:15:16 10:11:19:18
and the National Trust,
who were helping us on it,
0209 10:11:19:18 10:11:24:03
they sort of work
around that sort of area,
0210 10:11:24:03 10:11:27:00
and so we usually
go around that area,
0211 10:11:27:00 10:11:30:10
because they think
it's a good area for us to learn.
0212 10:11:31:18 10:11:35:11
Children can learn
about their environment
0213 10:11:35:11 10:11:38:08
and how things have changed
over the years,
0214 10:11:38:08 10:11:44:22
and what we can do to help
and just appreciate the environment.
0215 10:11:46:12 10:11:49:19
The mud made it
even better because we...
0216 10:11:49:19 10:11:53:18
It got really muddy
and it was a really good laugh,
0217 10:11:53:18 10:11:58:02
because everyone was slipping over
and getting stuck,
0218 10:11:58:02 10:12:00:16
and it was really enjoyable.
0219 10:12:02:17 10:12:07:09
It would be really good if we could
just learn all the time out there,
0220 10:12:07:09 10:12:09:03
but we can't, obviously.
0221 10:12:11:14 10:12:13:04
(narrator) It's back to school
0222 10:12:13:04 10:12:15:15
for the pupils to write
an account of their visit,
0223 10:12:15:15 10:12:19:18
before using their findings of
the river survey to design a poster.
0224 10:12:22:08 10:12:26:08
Natural bowl. We talked about that
and the water all coming down.
0225 10:12:27:16 10:12:29:24
The follow-up lesson
really reinforces
0226 10:12:29:24 10:12:32:24
what they've learnt
in the field trip,
0227 10:12:32:24 10:12:37:08
and so we're just looking at
what they've learnt, going over it,
0228 10:12:37:08 10:12:40:21
making sure they remembered
all the words,
0229 10:12:40:21 10:12:44:15
all the terminology,
all the things that happened,
0230 10:12:44:15 10:12:47:19
why they were measuring the river
at different places,
0231 10:12:47:19 10:12:51:15
the speeds of the river at different
places, why it was like that.
0232 10:12:56:13 10:13:00:06
It's easier to engage them
because they've been on the trip,
0233 10:13:00:06 10:13:03:03
they have fun remembering
and choosing the pictures,
0234 10:13:03:03 10:13:07:24
which also remind them of
what they were doing yesterday.
0235 10:13:07:24 10:13:11:02
You need to know about the stones.
The inside stones are small
0236 10:13:11:02 10:13:13:10
and the outside stones are large.
0237 10:13:13:10 10:13:16:11
So you can draw those
on your poster, can't you?
0238 10:13:16:11 10:13:19:18
It's a proven fact
that many pupils learn better
0239 10:13:19:18 10:13:23:06
by engaging with
the natural environment,
0240 10:13:23:06 10:13:26:07
having practical hands-on
experience of it.
0241 10:13:26:07 10:13:29:13
It taps into the different thinking
skills and learning styles.
0242 10:13:33:01 10:13:35:19
(Helen) Children just have fun
when they're outside.
0243 10:13:35:19 10:13:38:23
They're not thinking about learning,
they just are learning.
0244 10:13:38:23 10:13:40:11
But at the same time they learn
0245 10:13:40:11 10:13:44:18
everything that Rob and I
set out to teach them. So...
0246 10:13:44:18 10:13:47:20
Them having fun as well
is just great.
0247 10:13:50:00 10:13:52:20
Visiontext Subtitles: Sarah Emery
0248 10:13:52:20 10:13:54:24