PRIMARY school teachers who want to help their pupils understand climate change can now join a University of Reading course.
Experts in education and meteorology have been involved in the design of the course, Teaching Climate and Sustainability in Primary Schools: An Outdoor Learning Approach.
The free and interactive sessions feature a range of outdoor activities to teach young children about sustainability, weather and biodiversity, and differs from other courses that focus on classroom-based learning.
Professor Helen Bilton, professor of outdoor learning at the Institute of Education at the University of Reading, said: “To care for the world, you need to love it. To love it, you need to be a part of it. And to be a part of it, you need to spend lots of time out in it.
“Outdoor learning allows children to appreciate the world’s power and fragility. It is a valuable teaching tool and we hope that combining it with the fundamental problem of climate change will equip the next generation with vital skills to help address future challenges.”
Learners who sign up to the course will see outdoor learning activities in action at Floreat Montague Park Primary School in Wokingham.
These include planting vegetables to learn about food production, investigating food waste and recycling, and discussing the seasons.
The two-week course aims to help teachers build action plans for their own teaching or make an impact on wider climate education at their school.
Since October 2013, the University of Reading’s online courses have reached more than a million people in more than 190 countries.
Teaching Climate and Sustainability in Primary Schools: An Outdoor Learning Approach will be available on FutureLearn from Monday, February 28.
For more information, visit: www.futurelearn.com/courses/teaching-climate-and-sustainability-in-primary-schools
