Mr Mahon, Mr Kinzelmann, Mrs Tomlimson and Mr Greenwood had the great pleasure of spending the day with Year 8 on Thursday this week, as they undertook a full day of Field Research and activities related to their current extended project, which asks the question: “Do people in Cheshire recycle effectively, and is Cheshire a sustainable county?”
Pupils spent the morning out in the communities of Knutsford and Wilmslow, braving the bitter wind and occasional rain shower, to conduct surveys and interviews with local residents and owners/employees of small businesses. The children confidently engaged with members of the public to ask a series of questions about recycling habits and their understanding of environmental sustainability, in order to build a large field of both quantitative and qualitative data.
Once back on site in the afternoon, the pupils enjoyed a lengthy and in-depth discussion with our caterers, Holroyd Howe, learning about the ways in which Terra Nova aims to operate in a sustainable way. Pupils learned about the different strategies employed by our innovative chefs to ensure leftover food does not go to waste, and that the sustainability credentials of suppliers, including their use of packaging, is of huge importance.
Finally, pupils got stuck into an activity to highlight the frustrations and challenges of current domestic recycling practices, where certain materials that can be recycled in one town or county are not able to be recycled in others. In teams of 4, pupils raced to sort piles of recycling according to guidance of what was legitimately recyclable, and what would have contaminated the load. With prizes for the winners, the pupils showed excitement, frustration and focus in equal measure to get the job done, before rotating round to a different pile, and going again, but with a completely different set of guidance. The overwhelming consensus was that streamlining of recyclable materials across the country would make things easier to understand for residents, and lead to an overall improvement in people’s approaches to living sustainably.
A huge well done to all Year 8 pupils for a fantastic day, full of hard work, focus, and learning.
