Eco-Schools National Eco-Committee Advent Calendar Day Two!

Day Two of introducing our amazing National Eco-Committee members, read their thoughts on environmental learning in schools below!

Danny!

School is where people get educated with information that stays with them for the rest of their lives. If children learn about the importance of the environment at a young age, this knowledge stays with you for all of your life. This means that you grow up knowing about making the right choices and are aware of the impacts of different things in the world around you, such as pollution, deforestation, ocean plastic, and nature conservation and and will always act in a sensible and healthy way for the planet. I love learning about nature, both in school and with what my family have always taught me. This means that it is so much more interesting when we go on walks and spend time outside, because I can recognise plants, birds and animal species and notice changes in the world around me. Listening to birds or walking in the woods and seeing different mushrooms and toadstools and insects is fascinating, and makes you feel really connected to the world when you can identify species when you see them in real life and not just in a book.

Ella!

I think it is important to learn about the environment in school to understand the impact of climate change and pollution and how human actions have affected the world in the past and could affect it in the future. Learning about the environment encourages us to be reflective and opens up questions and discussions about what we do and why we do it. It also encourages us to review how our school and families are protecting the environment and if we could do more. As well as learning about the negative impact humans have had, it is also a time to celebrate all the good things that people are doing and to spread the word about the need to take action.

Emily!

I think that we should incorporate green themes into our English curriculums. In key stage 3 especially, schools are able to study a wide range of books with their students; why not include some books about nature and the environment! Especially with younger years, topics covered in books in school can have a great influence on them. Reading books such as “Diary of a Young Naturalist” and other books by inspired young people could work wonders in inspiring pupils to do their part to save the environment. These books that would be amazing to study in English classes can be very eye-opening and I think that in the long run they will give pupils the chance to learn about the world that they live in from a young age, and be able to pick apart what the writer is saying with their teachers.

Eva!

I think lessons should include everything environment related. It would be lovely to see a green curriculum in every school, not just mine and why not a pledge tree too! Every school should want to earn their Green flag- ours is displayed proudly in our school. While it is important to teach children about climate change, pollution and nature, it can also be quite scary to think that we are destroying the planet. The recent Amazon fires, and news of species becoming extinct can be really upsetting to young children and quite shocking. Whilst we need to learn about what we have done wrong in the past, and how we got into this mess, I think that looking at the positives and looking to the future and how we can improve things from now on, is even more important.