Education

At Shallowford Farm we are passionate about education, sharing information and experiences, growing in our love and understanding of the world around us – people, plants, animals and places.

“No one will protect what they don’t care about and no one will care about what they have never experienced” 
– Sir David Attenborough (2010) 

We do not care for that which we don’t understand, that which we don’t understand we fear and that which we fear we kill.

This applies to people, ecosystems, plants and animals – it’s all about Knowledge!!!!!

“Children are sponges for information and dependent upon their circumstances, what they absorb, will have a lasting impact and form part of how that child develops and performs as an adult.  It is vital that ALL our children have the opportunity to have broad experience of the world around them to be able to make judgements, form opinions and develop characters to be a worthwhile member of society.”
– Betty Hale (2018)

Many  of the subjects on the NC can be addressed through experiences shared at Shallowford farm, especially Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM)

A visit to the farm, be it 1 day or a whole weeks residential, will be jam-packed with encounters that stimulate, teach, develop and challenge young people. There are plenty of opportunities to be practically involved, to question and discuss, to review and reflect.

Each visiting group comes with different needs and each programme will be designed to meet those needs. Therefore every programme is different.

Extracts from the National Curriculum for Primary education. All of these highlighted sections can be addressed through an experience at Shallowford farm.

• Pupils should explore examples of human impact (both positive and negative) on environments, for example, the positive effects of nature reserves, ecologically planned parks, or garden ponds, and the negative effects of population and development, litter or deforestation.
• Describe the differences in the life cycles of a mammal, an amphibian, an insect and a bird, describe the life process of reproduction in some plants and animals.
• Recognise that living things produce offspring of the same kind, but normally offspring vary and are not identical to their parents identify how animals and plants are adapted to suit their environment in different ways and that adaptation may lead to evolution.
• Understand and apply the principles of a healthy and varied diet, prepare and cook a variety of predominantly savoury dishes using a range of cooking techniques. Understand seasonality, and know where and how a variety of ingredients are grown, reared and caught.