Inspiring the next generation of school children

Helping children explore nature

Louise Wallace is involved with a project set up over 30 years ago by the late poet laureate Ted Hughes, to support young people and schools “to get outside and link farming and wildlife.”

She believes there is great work like the Kingfisher Award Scheme being done across the UK, but there’s a need to move with the times.

“There's some really innovative projects out there that are kind of trying to connect with young people in a way that young people connect to these days, which perhaps is not linked to the traditional way.

“It’s changing, and I think we need to change with it,” Louise said.

 

Taking your farm to school

Exploring the more ‘non-traditional’ ways of offering school farm visits, Tom Martin told Farming Focus™ how he’s found a way of taking farms into the classroom.

“Seven years ago, we founded Farmer Time,” Tom explained. “We connect farmers with teachers around the UK so that they can have a series of video calls every two or three weeks, from the farm to the classroom, directly engaging with the children and basically bringing their curriculum learning to life. We're demonstrating, we're illustrating exactly what they're learning in the classroom, using our farms and our farmers.

“Everybody learns differently. Some of us can learn by reading, others by experiencing things, others by listening, others by watching and observing. So it's really important that actually our classrooms cater to all those learning styles,” he said.

“Bringing that learning to life by having a real live farmer with a real-life farm, right in front of them on the screen” is a large part of Farmer Time’s success – and it’s not a one-off call, the children build a relationship with the farmer throughout the year.

 

Knowing nature helps protect it

As well as these approaches potentially stimulating an interest in being the next generation in agriculture, Louise explained the importance of connecting children with nature by drawing on a quote from Sir David Attenborough:

“If children don't grow up knowing about nature and appreciating it, they'll not understand it. And if they don't understand it, how will they protect it? And if they don't protect it, who will?”

She echoed Tom’s comments about learning styles, suggesting: “It's not a case of saying children should only learn about farming and wildlife on a farm and not in the classroom or not on the screen. There should be lots of different opportunities for different learning styles and for teachers to engage because it's about lighting that spark for those children.”

 

Inspiring to inspire

Both guests emphasised the need to inspire teachers and educators so they, in turn, can inspire the children. 

“If we're not exciting our teachers, then how can we have them inspire the children?” Tom asked. “Teachers are the gatekeepers of the classroom and rightly so.

“But we often find that our teachers who have a huge broad experience across a whole range of subjects often don't know quite so much about farming.”

He used genetics as an example of how he’s helped teachers understand the links between the curriculum and farm education.

“Every farmer in the UK can talk genetics. We're constantly trying to engineer healthier plants and animals and plants that grow faster and more resistant to disease.

“But those teachers, if they weren't aware of that genetic application, then they won't be able to bring that into the classroom, and the children won't be able to get the most out of that particular topic.”

 

The role of government and local organisations

In her work with FWAG, Louise has seen the role local organisations can play in connecting farmers with the next generation.

“Children and young people, they're our future farmers, they're our future engineers, conservationists, scientists, so it's really vital that organisations use their connections to join those jigsaw pieces together,” she said.

She’d also like to see government and local authorities making school farm visits easier, citing transport costs as a common issue, and the process of children going ‘off site’:

“Gone are the days where you might have a grandparent in the school and the children can walk as a class up to the local farmer without going through quite a rigorous tick box system.”

Helping teachers to think more creatively about the curriculum is another important element.

“[Teachers] just don't have the time or the capacity within the schools to think outside the box and think laterally. It's almost seen as an extra and actually it should be seen as an essential,” she explained. 

Tom agreed, putting some of the responsibility on to the Government.

“One of the things that government can do is recognise that virtual visits are a complement to those physical visits and funding for SFI. And really, our virtual calls, we're the gateway to physical visits,” he explained.

 

Shaping future careers in agriculture

When asked whether initiatives such as Farmer Time and the Kingfisher Award Scheme can encourage the next generation to consider a career in agriculture, Tom believes they can.

“It's worth remembering that, yes, we've never been more divorced from where our food comes from, but people have never been more interested,” he said. “People are absolutely fascinated with farming. And I think connecting that to the potential for them, there are so many opportunities.

“If you wanted to be a top engineer, you perhaps wouldn't think about agricultural engineering. We've got to make sure that that's front and centre when young people are making those career choices and they need to see people like them doing those jobs already. So, it's a little bit of everybody needs to be part of this.

“Whether it's hosting a farm visit, being part of Farmer Time, writing in the parish magazine, doing something via social media, whatever it might be, it's going to take the whole industry. We're only 1% of the UK population, so we need to make sure we get bang for our buck in encouraging the brightest and best into food and farming.”

This sentiment echoes a previous podcast episode in which BBC journalist Anna Jones and communications specialist Kendra Hall encouraged farmers to connect with the public by being honest, authentic and involved at a local level (series 1, episode 5).

And how technology is influencing the future of farming was examined in an episode featuring tech company founder Matt Dobbs and Devon farmer Adam Short (series 5, episode 4).

 

How to build connections with schools

In a second podcast episode, Tom and Louise return to help farmers keen to connect with schools but not sure where to start. Not surprisingly, Tom recommends his initiative Farmer Time, but also other organisations such as FWAG, the Country Trust or Farms for City Children. 

“These organisations exist because they're really good at helping farmers like you to play their part,” he said.

Louise also encouraged farmers to be proactive by approaching schools, but for those not wanting or able to host visits, just having a smartphone is enough Tom added.

“Now we've all been through COVID, we've made video calls. So, we've all got not only the technology in our pockets, but we've got the training to do that.”

An initiative like Farmer Time is a reasonably low time commitment, with support available for farmers and teachers to make best use of the calls.

“Most farmers say they're really nervous before the first one. But I get so many emails and messages saying, I was really nervous. It was brilliant. I can't wait for it the next time.”

Both guests also advocated other ways to connect, such as talks to groups, involvement at shows or writing in the local parish magazine.

“All it takes is one little spark just to kind of ignite and start that journey for that young person,” she said. “No thing is too small, ever.”

To hear from farmers who are bringing the local community onto their farm, listen to an earlier episode of Farming Focus™, ‘Your farm is your shop window: Connecting with the public’ featuring Pete and Jenny Olds (series 2, episode 8 + bonus).

The last word on farm education

“If you've got 10 minutes, you can be part of Farmer Time. If you've got a day a year, you can host a school visit. If you've got an hour a month, you can write in the local magazine. It's going to take all of us, whatever our skills and competences are, let's just do whatever we can do. And I think then we'll be absolutely unstoppable.” Tom Martin

“I find that a lot of groups we work with, their knowledge is so great of the big wide world, but actually their knowledge of what's on their doorstep and under their feet is really quite poor. Badger the school, in a really nice way. Raise the importance to the teachers and the head and the school staff.” Louise Wallace

 

Episode showstoppers

1.     If children grow up not knowing about nature and appreciating it, they won't understand it. And if they don't understand it, they won't protect it. It's therefore important for farmers to engage with children and those who teach them, so they grow up with an understanding.

2.     There are many ways to connect from a conversation in the village shop to writing in parish magazines to becoming involved in local organisations; it’s about strengthening our rural communities.

3.     These are opportunities for farmers to step out of their usual context and see the farming industry through the eyes of others, using it as a way to move forward.

Listen to the full episode at https://www.cornishmutual.co.uk/news-advice/farming-focus-podcast/ - also available via Spotify and Apple podcasts.

 

About our guests

Tom Martin is a mixed farmer in Cambridgeshire, moving back to the family farm 10 years. He started Farmer Time in 2018 to bring ‘the countryside to life’ for children through digital communication, matching farmers and schools across the UK. 

Louise Wallace is Education Officer with FWAG South West, working on several nature-based outreach education projects across Somerset, including the co-ordination of the county’s Kingfisher Award Scheme.