VIEW FROM THE CLASSROOM
also helps with the school’s external relationships. We have a small pond on site that we encourage the students to explore in lessons. In doing so, they can observe the huge range of biodiversity – even in a small ecosystem - and it helps set off their imagination.
One thing that is really popular with parents is our second-hand uniform sale scheme. It helps reduce consumption but also acts as a more affordable way for parents and carers to buy clothes for their children.
We have embedded climate-friendly choices throughout the school. For example, every classroom has recycling bins and children are taught about upcycling and good energy-saving habits. Each year, the school takes part in Walk to School Week where we encourage the parents and students to think about if their journeys to and from school could be made more climate-friendly.
There are plans to install more solar panels that will provide energy for the school and will be used to educate the children about renewable energy and climate change. We’re in the process of writing a sustainability handbook and are working closely with the River Learning Trust to implement it. Once it is complete, the handbook with form the basis of our school’s climate action plan.
What results have you seen from implementing these initiatives? As a Forest School, we encourage daily outdoor activities for children, fostering a connection with nature that plays a huge part in their understanding of the environment and instils a natural interest in them. Our specialised learner- led approach to outdoor education aims to develop students’ confidence, self-esteem, and skills in an outdoor environment.
The results we have witnessed - both from the Forest School and from the traditional classroom - stemming from our eco-initiatives have been remarkable.
There are the results you might expect to see, such as children making more eco-conscious decisions and engaging in conversations about sustainability and their hopes for the future.
However, there have been some hugely positive unexpected outcomes too.
We see higher levels of engagement as children connect with nature each day through our outdoor curriculum and are made to feel comfortable. Our relationships with parents and the wider community have strengthened as they actively participate in our allotment and support with requests for materials and projects, and by involving families we are fostering our community and a sense of belonging, which means children are more likely to engage fully with school. One thing we’re particularly proud of is our animal scheme. We keep animals within the school grounds – chickens, goats and rabbits. The thinking behind this is that - beyond teaching animal care - we believe that animals help socialise children and can improve their verbal skills.
The impact the animals have made is incredible. We have indeed seen the children’s verbal and social skills improve, but it has gone beyond that. We encourage the children to come to school early to feed them and have observed that looking after these animals has given children a profound sense of purpose and responsibility, and it has helped us to engage
pupils who struggle with their attendance. Parents and carers are also encouraged to help look after the animals, and we have noticed that communication between the school and the parents has improved through the scheme.
Why do you think this has worked well for the school?
Fundamentally, I think it is because we all believe in what we are doing for the children. We have seen such tangible results - from the allotment to the goats and everything in between - and it has spurred us on to think of new ways we can improve learning, engage the students and help protect the planet.
I have been very lucky to have the full support of our headteacher and the school leadership team throughout all of this. They have trusted me with some of the more obscure ideas I’ve had, which has made such a difference to the whole project.
What’s next?
We have absolutely loads of ideas that we want to get started on!
A huge goal is to use the food grown in the allotment to teach the children how to cook, and then use it to help feed the local community. Seeing as we get so much help from the wider community with the growing of the produce, this feels like a natural step in paying them back. There’s a plan to build a sensory garden for the pupils with the help of the local community, which I am really excited about.
Finally, we are determined to introduce more intergenerational work within the school to help create a community atmosphere. We are looking into partnering with local elderly groups to work with selected pupils.
What advice do you have for other schools who might want to do something similar? Be creative! Think about what small changes you could implement that would benefit your pupils and go from there.
I know that Cutteslowe is incredibly lucky and that not all schools will have the resources to do some of the things that we do, but it starts with passion and by thinking about how you can do things differently in your setting for the sake of learning and the planet.
https://www.cuttesloweprimary.org/ December 2023
www.education-today.co.uk 21
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