Laura Copley, Scotland Education Families & Youth Manager, fills us in on RSPB’s Wild Challenge Awards scheme as a perfect way to enhance your children’s home-schooling experiences whilst being fun for all the family.
Take the #WildChallenge
As we all continue our lockdown marathon with the weeks all starting to merge into one another, many parents have found the stay-at-home teaching requirements that are now being placed upon them to be quite difficult and at times pretty stressful. A few of my parent friends have been wracking their brains on how to keep their children focused on their schoolwork as screen distractions, computer games and Netflix can become an all-too-common battle ground for a few households. Does this sound familiar?
The good news is that the Wild Challenge award scheme offers families a structured programme of first-hand outdoor learning experiences to keep those little minds occupied and their little hands away from the remote control. Not only does it have really good links to the Scottish curriculum, but it also means as parents you also get to down tools, step away from the emails and have a bit of fun outside too!
Don’t have a garden? No worries! Many of the activities can be done on a windowsill or out in a local greenspace. Even a grassy verge will do! There is nothing better than a bit of creative DIY birdfeeder making from old yogurt pots or getting up close and personal with wildlife during a minibeast safari to lift the spirits and avoid cabin fever. We might be rattling around our houses, but nature continues to do its thing outside and can provide us all with a bit of light relief (As well as some inspiring moments of learning of course)!
It is free to sign up and access the range of easy activities that prompts children to connect with, and learn about and help nature through a series of fun and engaging activities as they work towards a Bronze, Silver or Gold certificate which can be sent directly to your home. This makes Wild Challenge a perfect framework for home-based learning, breathing new life and excitement into our days and weeks.
All you need to do is create an account and an online profile and within a few quick and easy steps you’ll be ready to get started with your first wild challenge. Has your family got what it takes to achieve gold?
You can go as quickly or as slowly as you like, and we have a whole range of accessible downloadable resources to make the most of this beautiful time of the year and to suit your needs and location.
Not sure where to start? Check out some of our Wild Challenge videos below to see how it's done. If you're ready to dive in - sign up now at https://www.rspb.org.uk/wildchallenge!