One of the things we have missed at Saltholme over Covid is the sound of school visits- the voices of children as we help them discover our wonderful reserve and the huge variety of wildlife that lives here. Since our last pre-Covid visit on 16 March 2020, we have been eagerly awaiting the return of schools. Since October 2021, we have welcomed over 500 children and young people back to our reserve (as part of our Schools on Reserves programme), and it has been such a welcome sign of a return to normality.
As a Schools on Reserves site, we offer a completely different classroom experience, purely because our classroom is almost entirely outdoors! Visiting us brings the textbooks to life; children get hands-on with nature, learning and exploring at their own pace. This adds up to an unforgettable experience.
Figure 1: Image credit- Ben Andrew
Outdoor learning has become much more mainstream in recent years, as a focus on children’s mental health and wellbeing has resulted in schools and teachers look for different ways of teaching. Outdoor learning has been repeatedly proven to boost academic attainment and wellbeing in children (link, link). Even something as simple as putting up some bird feeders and ponds in a communal area can have a massive effect on pupils, as this example from a school in Blackpool shows.
You don’t need us to tell you that the disruption caused by Covid has had a massive and noticeable effect on children’s social and academic development. Outdoor learning also helps children develop their problem solving skills and risk awareness (link), which we encourage by utilising child-led learning methods throughout our sessions, and it is these ‘soft skills’ that also benefit from learning outdoors.
Why should you bring your class to Saltholme?
We cover a variety of areas of the Science curriculum, such as Plants, Living Things and Habitats, and Seasonal Changes. We only teach information that is relevant to the topic. We are accredited by the Council for Learning Outside the Classroom, which means every time you bring your class to visit, you know your students will be getting a safe and informative day out, and that our staff will be teaching them what they need to know- we won’t be taking them ‘twitching’ all day!
Each of our sessions are designed to last a half day, meaning you can combine two workshops to make a full day of learning. Most visits last from 10-2.30, however we can alter this if you wish to leave earlier.
Our staff and volunteers also know the reserve and the wildlife like the back of their hand and can tell you loads of interesting facts about the creatures that the children will find- things that aren’t in the textbooks. For example, did you know that dragonflies spend 80% of their lifecycle underwater? Or that the dragonfly larvae shoot air out of their bottoms to escape predators!
Figure 2: Children investigating pond minibeasts.
What happens when you bring your class to visit?
We will be there to greet your coach upon arrival, bring you into the classroom to introduce ourselves and what we will be learning about today, and then we head out to start our day of learning! The classroom is ours and is locked while we’re outside.
We head into the Discovery Zone. This is our dedicated learning area, away from the main reserve, which contains everything your class need for our visit. Not only does this mean we keep disturbance to other visitors to a minimum, but it also means it safer in terms of safeguarding.
Except in instances of extreme weather, each of our sessions (which last for approximately 2 hours) are usually spent outside. After all, our sessions are intended to help build resilience! We usually break for lunch around 11.50 for around half an hour. After a brief recap of the morning’s activities, we head out again for the afternoon session. Depending on what time you are wanting to leave, we usually manage a trip to adventure playground, as who doesn’t love 15 minutes on the swings?
Before we finish for the day, we head back to the classroom, after a last toilet and wash hands visit! We will recap on what we have learnt today before we take you back out to the coach. And just like that, the trip is over!
Figure 3: An example of what we find during the visit.
This of course is a brief snapshot of what happens on a school trip- we don’t want to tell you everything, we want you to come and see for yourself!
We would love to welcome your class to Saltholme. There is nothing quite like letting your class have a day outside the classroom; these trips give children the relative freedom to explore, develop social and team working skills, and letting them get up close with some of the amazing wildlife. If it was possible to fully describe how much of a benefit our school workshops are, we would. However, as we can’t, you’ll just have to come and find out for yourself!
To find out more about our school sessions, you can either email our Learning Officer directly at josh.swales@rspb.org.uk, or visit our website
Saltholme Nature Reserve | School Trip Ideas - The RSPB