Fairhaven Primary School

Session One – Habitat surveying and investigating invertebrates

It was great to be back at Fairhaven Primary to deliver the Wilder School assembly to the whole school. Everyone was very excited and loved the 'guess the sound of the animal' game we played. All the children were enthusiastic about their local wildlife and lots of them came up after the assembly to tell me about a recent hedgehog sighting in their playground!

For the first Wilder School session, I met with Beech class to survey the existing habitats in the school grounds and what invertebrates live there. During the habitat survey we had a great time exploring and the children were so excited and proud to show me their existing habitats, like their hedgehog home and log piles. We also kept an eye out for evidence of wildlife, finding things such as holes in fences. As a class we identified lots of different habitats but also saw room for improvement as there was a lack of water sources and flowers. After this we went invertebrate hunting and found lots of creatures like slugs, snails, shield bugs and spiders.

Session Two - Habitat voting and wild art

For this session with Beech class we discussed what habitats we would like to create and the animals they would like to see in their school grounds. We played a matching game to learn about what creatures rely on each habitat. Then the class made a big choice involving what habitats they wanted more of at Fairhaven. The results will be revealed next time!

Our afternoon together finished with the class making wild art using natural materials in the wildlife garden. The children made artwork of the animals they would like to see in their school grounds. They had lots of fun and made some great pieces of art, such as a snake made of leaves and a hedgehog made of sticks.

Session Three – Voting results and environmental games

On my third visit to Fairhaven, I revealed to Beech class the results of their habitat vote and we played some games to learn more about the creatures that they will help protect by creating these new habitats. The habitats they chose to implement were bat boxes, owl boxes, a pond and flowers. The class was so excited as I revealed the results, and they all cheered for each choice!

We then played games in the pouring rain – the class had great fun running around in their wellies! We had time to play four games, each of which focused on the species their new habitats will help such as pollinators, frogs, owls and bats. They loved the owl call game where they learnt about the different sounds that owls make and were able to recreate the sounds themselves.

Beech class assembly

For this visit, I went to watch the Beech class give an assembly to the whole school. They prepared a presentation all about what they have done so far and what we are going to be doing over the rest of the year. It was lovely to see them reflect on what they have already learnt and hear all about their favourite activities! The four students presenting also talked about the upcoming community event in the new year and the drop-in dig-out day in April. These two events excited the rest of the school as they could all get involved.

Session Four - Preparing for community fundraiser

I returned to Fairhaven for the first time this year for this session and it was lovely to see the class again. This crafty session involved the class getting creative, preparing materials for the community fundraiser to be held straight after school the same day. They made posters and a large display of the animals to be used for the fundraiser. Beech class had already prepared some amazing wildlife themed games, such as find the acorn, leaf matching, find the bird and animal homes golf! We also made the prizes for the games, such as badges, and pinecone bird feeders to be sold at the event.

Community fundraiser after school

The community fundraiser event was held straight after school and all children were invited to come along with their adults. The purpose of this event was to raise money for the wildlife pond to be dug in April, with all funds going towards materials and plants for the pond. The whole event was a real team effort from all the teachers and teaching assistants at Fairhaven - everyone mucked in to make the event a success.

They had lots of stalls including a raffle, tea and cake stall, tombola and the wildlife themed games that Beech class had created. Lots of the children from Beech class participated in running the wildlife themed games and helping me on the tombola stall. Overall the event was a great success. The hall was buzzing with so many people and it was amazing to see so much support for the project throughout the school community. In total they raised £307 which is amazing!

Session Five – Building owl and bat boxes

My fifth visit to Fairhaven was very exciting and involved Beech class making new habitats for the wildlife that lives in their local area. As their choices from last year were to make owl boxes and bat boxes, we had a large building session where they all got to make a box from start to finish in groups of three. I was also joined by owl expert Simon, who kindly came to give a talk on barn owls and show the children his amazing footage of owls growing from chicks to adults.

I had Year 3 with me making bat boxes, while Year 4 made the owl boxes with Simon. We finished the session with a total of five bat boxes, two tawny owl boxes, two barn owl boxes and one little owl box. One bat box and one owl box will be installed in the school, with the rest being donated to the local community to help wildlife thrive in South Walsham. The children had a great time and loved building the boxes themselves!

Session Six – Partner session with Dr Amanda Hartley on forensic ecology

After my building session, I returned to Fairhaven with a special visitor. Dr Amanda Hartley is a forensic ecologist, who needed the help of Beech class to help solve a crime! Beech class learnt all about forensic ecology and how science can help solve crimes in real life settings. The class got the opportunity to investigate different soils and their ph. levels, as well as investigate different types of plants. Using the scientific techniques they had learned, the class was able to help Amanda solve the mystery of the stolen treasure that was hidden in Fairhaven's wildlife garden!

Community pond dig out day

My next visit to Fairhaven was to help support them on their community pond dig out day! One Saturday in April, the school invited all the students and their families to help dig out their wildlife pond and do lots of other wildlife and gardening activities. Throughout the day, people took part in digging the pond, collecting rainwater, planting flowers, tidying the garden and getting creative making an art mural.

It was great to see so many families turn up; many were from Beech class, but it was lovely to see other students come along with their families too. Everyone mucked in and helped create the amazing pond, which we finished in one day thanks to the efforts of everyone who came along!

Session Seven - Beech class visit to Ranworth Broad

Beech class came to visit us at Ranworth on a school trip. Many of them were so excited to return, as nearly all of them had been to Ranworth before! During their visit, they took part in three different activities: a nature walk, bird watching and dyke dipping. They all had such a great time - they particularly enjoyed using the binoculars as many of them hadn't used them before!

It was great to give the children the opportunity to see what wildlife lives nearby on their doorstep and to show them how their own local area can be a safe haven for wildlife.

Session Eight – Partner session with Nick Sanderson, Broads Authority, on local landscapes of Broads

On my next visit to Fairhaven, I was joined by another special visitor, Nick Sanderson from the Broads Authority, who very kindly delivered a session to Beech class all about the Broads. Beech class learnt all about the history of the Broads, making a model Wherry, and got to see the old tools marshmen used to use to cut reed and thatch roofs! They also got a chance to learn about water safety and learnt how to use a throw line if they ever see someone in trouble in the water.

Everyone had a great time and it was a good chance for Beech class to discover more about how special their local area is, as well as about the heritage of the land and people who once lived there!

Session Nine - Final session reflecting and investigating invertebrates with families

For my last session this year with Beech class, we welcomed the children's parents and carers to join in with the activities! First, we reflected on what has changed, with the children drawing new maps of their school following the ones we made back in September. Many of them were surprised by what they drew differently, including the new pond! Next, each child wrote out a pledge for what they can do themselves to help wildlife in the future. We then went outside to the wildlife garden and hung the pledges on the trees and bushes.

For our main activity, we were investigating invertebrates. The children and adults worked together in groups to find creatures living in the wildlife garden and identified them using the school's new microscopes. We found so many creatures living in the garden, including centipedes, caterpillars, millipedes, slugs and lots and lots of ground beetles. Everyone had so much fun including the adults!

Overall, I’ve been so impressed with Beech class's engagement and enthusiasm throughout the year and I am excited to see how they continue to help wildlife in the future!