Supporting farmers to inspire the next generation

It’s been an exciting few months for Barleybird. Our fledgling organisation has begun working with a range of different people in the local community including farmers, teachers, and school children in collaboration with practitioners in food, farming, art and nature.

A project led by Natural Habitat, Weaving Farms, Land, People and Planet, aims to connect school children and the wider public with the farmed landscape, began with a training session for the farmer members of the Blyth Valley Farm Cluster. Barleybird Director, Gaina Dunsire, led a workshop which outlined the steps needed to organise a farm visit, including how to address health and safety requirements which can potentially be a concern for both farms and schools. The farmers were also encouraged to see their farms as the amazing learning resources they are. Linking these activities to the National Curriculum can also help to make a farm visit more appealing to teachers who work within an already crowded curriculum.

Subsequent sessions for the project were held in schools. At Ilketshall Primary School, children discussed in groups what they had eaten for breakfast, and where they thought the ingredients came from. This led to discussions about seasonality, food miles and the UK climate. The children were shocked to learn that we grew only 16% of the fruit we consumed in the UK in 2020 (www.cbi.eu)

A further activity linked farming to the History curriculum. Children developed their understanding of chronology, and sorted images of crops, animals, machinery and people, to demonstrate show how much farming has, and also what hasn’t, changed over time in the farmed landscape around them.

Another element of Barleybird’s collaboration with Natural Habitat was to support farmers by co-planning activities and provide advice regarding health and safety in preparation for school visits. The wonderful Broad Oak Farm went on to be great hosts: children tasted peas straight from the pod, identified caddis fly larvae from the pond, and explored the mixed species woodland. They also learned about the life cycles of a range of farm animals whilst meeting cows, sheep, pigs, goats and alpacas. The inspiring farm staff kept the children’s attention all morning with their fun facts and interactive activities, and no question was left unanswered…..even the awkward ones about reproduction and eating meat!

Natural Habitat’s film showing the full Weaving Farms, Land, People and Planet project is available to watch, as well as a free downloadable educational resource for Primary Schools

If you would like Barleybird to work with your farm or school, please get in touch: admin@barleybird.org