Last Thursday, I accompanied some highly excited children from All Saints Primary School, Heaton Norris in Stockport, up to near the source of the river Etherow in the Peak District National Park.
This was one of four Stockport primary schools and 174 children that were supported by MWH Mersey Basin Week grants to participate in the river field studies organised by the Longdendale Environmental Education Centre. This is a service run by a partnership between United Utilities and the Peak District National Park Authority.
We travelled to the beautiful Crowden Valley in Longdendale where, guided and inspired by leaders Sarah and Chris, we learned at first hand the special qualities of the Peak District and the features of the babbling upland streams.
The children composed poems about their favourite views and found their own ‘magic spot’ to both experience and sketch the river landscape. 21 vivacious children suddenly became quiet for the first time that day and this was a truly inspiring experience.
The highlight of the trip, for the children, was the river dipping. Equipped with nets, trays and hand lenses, no stone went unturned in the search for mini-beasts.
The trip was nicely rounded up by locating the places and features we had talked about on a giant floor map of the Mersey Basin. The children then created their own ‘River Symphony’ using the centre’s junk instruments.
The feedback on the visit from the teachers was extremely positive. One school mentioned that the grant and the free service of the Longdendale Environmental Education Centre had enabled them to do such a trip for the first time in seven years.
Huge thanks go out to Jo, Sarah and Chris at the Longdendale Environmental Education Centre who put so much work into making the trips a success. I would also like to thank Amanda Kelly, Primary Curriculum Consultant at Stockport MBC, for helping promote the sessions to the schools.
For more information about the services of the Longdendale Environmental Education Centre, telephone 01457 868127.
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