Graham Ward of Stockbridge Technology Centre expalins to teachers how satellites are used to grow crops
A Hull National Teaching School leads the way with tripartite project to embed food and farming into the curriculum
A leading Hull Primary School visited a North Yorkshire Agricultural and Horticultural Research Station for the launch of a pioneering project that will inform teachers to educate and enthuse pupils about the food on their plates.
Staff at Gillshill Primary School, Cavendish Road, Hull have partnered with Stockbridge Technology Centre in Selby and farm education business, Discovering our Countryside to deliver a series of food and farming related visits for teachers and catering staff.
The project is being coordinated by farm based Stockbridge Technology Centre. Its Chief Executive, Graham Ward OBE, is excited about the project: “Agriculture is a fantastic vehicle to bring all areas of the curriculum alive, not just food production. We can use our workplace activity to teach numeracy, history, science as well as cookery and healthy eating.
Mr Ward added: “The farming, food and drink sector is responsible for 3.5 million jobs and 13% of the UK’s overall economy. This project will also illustrate to children and teachers the wide career opportunities in food and agriculture sectors.”
Gillshill Head Teacher, Susan Brummitt is delighted to be part of such a ground breaking project: “Pupils have been visiting farms to learn about food for many years, but this is the first time that a project has been developed to train teachers about all elements of the food chain from farm to fork.”
It is a Nineveh Trust and an EU funded Erasmus project that is being coordinated by Stockbridge Technology Centre. As part of the project, teachers from Gillshill Primary School and other members of the Tidal Teaching School Alliance will be invited to visit different types of farms, food manufacturers, artisan food producers and catering establishments in order to train class teachers and subject leaders to enable them to embed food and farming within the New Curriculum.
Mark Thompson from Discovering Our Countryside said: “The aim of the project is to make teachers, catering staff, young people and their parents and carers aware of the food chain, give them an understanding of the benefits of locally produced food and to understand the career opportunities that exist within the local food and farming industry.”
The project will also engage the services of the East Yorkshire Local Food Network and the East Riding of Yorkshire Council.
Teachers experiencing a modern tractor