Rainwater Harvesting
After a week off, gardening club was back with a bang today as the irrigation system that class 2 had designed was installed on the allotment. The session was led by the class 2 teacher and attended by many of the KS2 children.
The irrigation project follows up the topic of rainwater harvesting systems that the children have been studying as one of their geography topics in school. The class 2 teacher felt the children’s understanding of the subject would be bolstered by a practical, hands on session, allowing them to put theory into practice, and bring learning to life.
This model is just one of the designs the children came up with. A raised water butt is connected to the raised beds using a hose.
The children began by moving large breeze blocks into position for the water butt to sit on. Nearly every activity on the allotment teaches the children about the importance of team work, it’s a lesson that never gets old.
With the help of a parent, the children enjoyed some DT by putting the guttering together. They offered it up to the shed to check the length was correct.
With careful supervision, the children had a go with hand tools including saws and drills. They helped to cut down to size the batons that the guttering system would be fixed to the shed with.
There was much measuring and holding ends of wood up, which some of the children were only just tall enough to do!
What’s so lovely about the allotment is that there is always so much fun to be had. Outdoor learning isn’t always about being set a specific activity, much of the learning that children do comes through play, be that with friends jumping up and down on giant tractor tyres…
…or pushing friends around in wheelbarrows. At the allotment children learn a lot about who they are, what they’re good at and how to develop confidence.
The children all had a go at cutting the guttering down to the right size...
…and when it was too tough, they watched and listened.
An impromptu tug of war fight commenced with an old piece of rope the children found lying on the ground. Really lovely stuff.
Once the guttering system was fitted, it needed testing to check it worked. It was a big moment!
The children were so excited to see the first droplets of water seeping out of the hose, and for good reason. It was a subject they initially read about in books in school, which was turned into a real life problem solving exercise on the allotment. From models they made themselves, the final irrigation system is a true reflection of the children’s designs. The great sense of satisfaction about what they have achieved is massively important for their confidence. They should all feel very proud of themselves.