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Environmental Awareness and Fun were at the Top of Our Learning Agenda and what a place to begin!! We seen plants from across the globe, stood tall next to even taller ferns and marveled at the marvelous colors, textures and smells! Gavin told us stories of the wonderful if slightly terrifying Sundews and their sticky traps before we adventured on to the Aloe Vera which we discovered had been used by Egyptians, Greeks, Romans and Glaswegians! The dense undergrowth of our new found Environment provided Sean with an opportunity to creep up on his prey (otherwise known as our Support Worker Ellen) as he sprang from the undergrowth to surprise her with a smile on his face!!! Learning was at the center of the day as we wondered at the wonderful Salep which is a very popular drink found in Turkey to the Red Hot Cats Tails and onto Stapelia from North Africa! Our journey took us around the world and we had only just begun......

Our adventures into the Environment continues with a visit to Pollok Park to meet Glasgow Countryside Rangers Fiona and Linzi as they help us learn within the Wild Life Garden at Pollok! We found that seeds were to be the topic of discussion for the day and the treasure we needed to find, only once we had did this would our learning and ideas begin to germinate! Abdul used his hands to explore and take himself on a sensory journey while Michal worked with Countryside Ranger Linzi to find seeds and store them for our future plans and plants! The interest of our support staff grew and they helped the learners as they made their way around the garden, Marian and Laura storing their seeds as they made their way along the swathes of green!

Countryside Rangers Fiona and Linzi took us allowed us to experience the textures, colors, scents and sights of the Wild Life Garden. Coltrane and Fiona worked as a team collecting and storing! We collected our seeds and then it was off to the Poly Tunnel to Plant! We used compost mixed with loam as we worked together planting our seeds into small trays. Linzi and Fiona explained the process of seeding, planting and then transplanting as we learned and laughed together. They told us their experiences of nature and the environment with passion and excitement in their voices and promised that our adventure in to the environment would be fantastic!!! John Muir said 'Keep close to natures heart...and break clear away, once in a while and climb a mountain or spend a week in the woods'! With the help of our friends the Glasgow Countryside Rangers we are beginning to see exactly what he means!!!

Today was to be the first of a two day experience working with different tools and also preparing and managing a SAFE camp fire. Fiona and Linzi showed us how to use a variety of tools, some sharp and some heavy but all dangerous. We all took turn and were careful when using the Lopers to cut willow branches and ultra-sharp peelers to prepare the branches. We used a wooden mallet and hooked knife to split the wood and prepare the fire. Linzi and Fiona talked us through the many safety reasons we needed to consider when lighting a fire and there were many. They told us how a safe fire can be enjoyable and can be used for making food, baking bread and helping to tell stories. We were soon to find out that this is indeed the case.....more next week!

Dry walling repairs Veg boxes for lettuce beds Bunting up ready to keep the birds off

The children worked in pairs, one blindfolded, taken to a tree and back. The blindfold removed and the child to find their way back to the tree. Children showed good navigation skills during this exercise.

more photos from this activity

Alfie did some research on the SOAC and made a poster to show his learning. He also found out about John Muir and found some interesting facts which he put in a poster. He found out about squirrels that live in the uk too, his poster shows what he learned.