Project Introduction

14/01/22 I can co-design a project

There was an excited buzz in the Blue Jays class this week as we returned to a fresh winter's climate and began to explore our ideas and thinking around our new project aims.

After sharing the vision for the project and a powerful message from David Attenborough, we thought about the concept of 'Environmental Influencers' and looked at some inspirational young people who have made a difference. Flying round the world, we looked at different schools that have taken an admirable approach to being 'eco'. It soon became clear that we all felt motivated to make a change that would encourage a more sustainable way of being.

Next, we looked at ten different areas that impact the health of our planet and carried out questionnaires to review how LWS is doing. To gather the information, we had to survey different classes, approach some of the teachers, observe around the school site as well as send emails. Once we had gathered the data, we discussed our findings as a class; we clarified our strengths and areas for development.

With five different areas (marine, transport, biodiversity, energy and waste) identified as potential areas to focus on, we split into pairs and worked through the planning process to develop some incredible project proposals that will help to shape our learning journey over the next term!

Step 1

21/01/22 I can explain key project concepts

We started the week discussing the idea of having a positive influence. Inspired by the moving words and ideas of the UN Youth for Climate Action we defined what an environmental influencer means to us and considered how we will develop our literacy and creative tech and digital communication skills to have an influence. To get an idea of how this has been done effectively, we researched and reviewed some 'Sustainable YouTubers'. We considered the message they were sharing with the public, the audiences and the different strategies used. After clarifying a range of online tools that can be used to share, we wrote descriptions of them and decided which method we would like to use to share our journey and inspire others.

Our next concept explored what that of 'biodiversity'. We distinguished the difference between species, habitat, eco-systems and environment, then discussed and identified examples of each one. Next week, we will continue to explore the incredible mix of living things on our planet!

Step 1

28/01/22 I can understand about eco-systems

This week, we looked at the incredible range of eco-systems that we have across the planet and researched some of the fascinating plant and animal species that live in communities within them.

Next, we began to explore how they survive and thrive within the eco-system and discovered how careful of a balancing act it all was! Making hypotheses based on the question 'would you get more energy from a serving of meat or plants?' we launched into finding out about the transfer of energy through an eco-system. We identified examples of different species who are producers, prey and predators and part of a food-chain in a range of eco-systems. Knowing that nature is complex and messy, we then moved onto the wonder of food-webs (where lots of food chains interact with one another) and took a look at our pond to discuss. Using wool, we illustrated the flow of energy within a pond from the sun to the producers and then the interaction between the prey and predators; we created an impressive web!

Step 1

03/02/22 I can appreciate biodiversity

We began the week by creating our own glossaries to define the scientific vocabulary we have been using whilst learning about biodiversity and eco-systems. In order to write clear definitions, we looked at science dictionaries, information texts and used the web.

Afterwards, we set off on an exciting scavenger hunt to take a closer look at eco-system interactions within our school grounds and put our vocabulary into practice! Using the iPads to document the interdependence between the range of living things was fascinating and we pulled our findings altogether using PicCollage.

As we had developed an understanding about the precious balance for living things to exist, we next began to discover and make connections about why biodiversity is important for humans in particular. Amongst others, we looked at some work of Sir David Attenborough and took research notes that identified different examples linked to health, food and even water purification! We are fast discovering how wonderful biodiversity is...

Step 1

11/02/22 I can investigate biodiversity

Our final week of this half term saw us celebrating the benefits of biodiversity and delving deeper into how it provides us with food, resources, supports our health and wellbeing. We created postcards to explain and illustrate these benefits.

Next, we began planning how to investigate biodiversity within our school site. We looked at the 'Scientific Method' and began to make our way through the process to plan our investigation. First, we made observations of the biodiversity around our school. From this we formulated different research questions about what we would like to find out and constructed a class research question to guide our investigation 'how does the location within LWS affect the amount of biodiversity?' Following on from this, we discussed hypotheses and predicted what we might see happen during investigation. There were some really interesting statements made and with our excellent knowledge of the site; we are already starting to make connections to justify our predictions.

After half term, we will carry out our investigation and compare it with biodiversity in another location!

Step 1

25/02/22 I can investigate biodiversity

Our first week back has seen us switching on our observation skills to explore biodiversity on site. Using our mindfulness skills, we headed to a spot and observed one chosen living thing in detail for a few minutes, noticing all of the little details.

We revisited our research question and hypotheses, modifying them with any additional ideas that may give reasons for our predictions. Following this, we planned out our experiment by considering what we needed to measure (dependent variable), what we needed to change (independent variable) and the things that should be kept the same (controlled variables).

Armed with magnifying glasses, ID materials, observation circles and our iPads, we headed to our first chosen area - the riverbank. We randomly selected an area to place our observation circle and counted the number of different species. Some of us also counted the number of each type of species too. We inputted the data into tables using Google Sheets. Next week, we will continue onto the other areas, analyse our data and write up our conclusions.

Step 1

04/03/22 I can analyse data and make conclusions.

An incredible week as we came to the end of our investigation and reflected on what the results showed us about the beautiful biodiversity in our school grounds.

We finished our observations in our other two chosen areas: around the pond and beside the large cedar tree and added our survey data to our digital tables. Back in the class den, we discussed how we could represent this data in a way that would allow us to see trends and patterns clearly and decided that a bar chart would most useful. Following a success criteria, we created outstandingly accurate and neat bar charts; some of us showed the number of species within each location, whereas others showed both the number of species and the different types.

Once we had clearly identified the facts that our data showed us, we began to write our conclusions. Reflecting back on hypothesis, we stated whether the data helped to prove or disprove our predictions and then began to explain why the biodiversity may have been varied in the different locations. We had great discussions around the changing biotic and abiotic factors and how this influenced living things.

Next week, we move onto researching the threats to biodiversity and starting to think about what positive action can be and is being taken.

Step 2

11/03/22 I can explore threats to biodiversity.

Moving into our second step of the project, we have spent the week looking at global threats to biodiversity. We looked at a range of different sources to make connections with our prior knowledge about eco-systems and climate change and how different human impacts are affecting biodiversity.

Studying some of the data from the WWF Living Planet Report 2020, we interpreted the tables and charts and discussed regional differences in biodiversity decline and how the Living Planet Index (LPI) was used to measure biodiversity worldwide. Using our maths skills, we noticed that interestingly climate change was only 6% proportion of the threat, whereas changes in land sea use was the leader in biodiversity decline.

After taking research notes and discussing our understanding of the facts, we thought about how we could share this information and took a closer look at the effectiveness and features of infographics. Using the Chromebooks, we accessed Canva to start designing our eye-catching and informative infographics about threats to biodiversity. We recognise it is important for everyone to know about them so that they can take positive action to reduce them!

Step 2 & 3

18/03/22 I can understand about human impact on biodiversity.

We began the week with a real 'buzz' as we explored the important role of bees for biodiversity and us as humans, followed by the different threats they face. Looking at a range of different sources, we learnt about the important work of Eva Crane and her lifetime of work and study of the special insect. Curiously, we briefly looked at the life cycle of bees and their different roles, in order to understand how they contribute so spectacularly to biodiversity and our way of life. It was shocking to hear how bee populations have been in decline for sometime now and the knock-on effects could be quite catastrophic if this continues. Feeling passionate about this issue, we designed informative posters about the plight of the bees and how we can help to save them!

Next, we put our problem-solving hats on and we started to think about different solutions to some of the biodiversity issues around the world. We had to think about the impact on biodiversity and eco-systems before then considering possible solutions for them and identifying the people who would be essential to make the change happen.

Coming up, we will continue to add to our eco-creation vision boards and take a closer look at UK initiatives to support biodiversity on our doorsteps.

Step 2 and 3

25/03/22 I can support biodiversity.

This week, we took a closer look at a range of strategies that organisations such as the Wildlife Trust, WWF and Naturehood have designed and recommended for people to promote biodiversity. Using our understanding from Step 1, we were able to explain how these had an impact on habitats and eco-systems and identify the species they would support.

Following this, we moved into thinking about our 'eco-creations'. The 'Design Cycle' was introduced to us so that we could understand the process we needed to go through to design our eco-creations and we set up our digital design portfolios. Ready to begin the journey, we identified what the problem was (biodiversity declining and a specific local example within this) , the need this has generated and justification as to why we should do something about it. In order to get some inspiration, we researched different products and analysed their design. This enabled us then to pick out the key common features that will inform our own designs and make a list of the materials we will need.

Next week, we continue to develop our ideas and then start creating our product!

Step 3 and 4

22/04/22 I can create a final product.

I can share my learning digitally.

Our first week back and wow we worked incredibly hard to achieve our outcomes in preparation for our 'Save Our Futures' event.

We began by researching a range of different methods that had been followed to create similar designs to our own and used these as a basis to write instructions about how to make our own eco-creations; we carefully considered the resources we had available as well as the needs of our own unique designs.

Once we had a clear logical plan, we ran through the health and safety rules for tool use and began to apply our technical skills to this very important task. Using hammers, screwdrivers, hacksaws, electric drills, spades, rakes and silicone guns our designs finally came to life right before our eyes. Collaboration and communication were key, as we discussed the correct tools to use, the size of nails or screws best for the job and how to overcome design challenges as we came across them. Offering feedback regularly to our peers was so important in helping one another create to our true potential.

Through the week, we switched from our design skills to our digital tech and online communication skills. As a class, we created a website to share our learning and inspiring others to 'nurture and show awareness of the wonder of biodiversity'. Working in small groups, each one of us contributed to the website with different forms of media, which was a lot of fun! We combined the use of iPads and Chromebooks to create and upload outstanding content and share so much of what we had learned through our project.

Take a look at our wonderful website: https://sites.google.com/view/lwsecoinfluencers/home

Carefully showcasing our design process was essential for the 'Save Our Futures' event. We decided that it was important for the visitors to know why and how we had designed and made our eco-creations and put together wonderful displays to share the information. We truly became 'Eco-Influencers'!