RHET Fife CI
RHET Fife Countryside Initiative works to support schools in Fife with projects and topics on food, farming and the countryside.
The main services we offer are Farm Visits, Classroom Speakers, Projects and Curriculum-linked Resources.
We are currently the leading provider of year-round risk assessed farm visits throughout the area with 22 host farms across Fife who provide tailor-made visits to both Primary and Secondary Schools.
In addition to Farm Visits we have a network of trained Classroom Speakers who can deliver talks on a whole range of rural topics in school.
All our services are FREE to schools in Scotland!
From 2009 to 2010 RHET Fife CI facilitated 40 Farm Visits and 67 Classroom Speaker Talks.
A farm visit or classroom speaker can fit in with 'A Curriculum For Excellence', helping you work towards Eco-schools, Determined to Succeed, Hungry for Success, and Health Promoting Schools targets whilst providing a valuable and memorable learning experience for children involved.
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Below are some of the ways in which RHET Fife CI can help add value to your teaching on farming, food and the countryside in your local area:
For Primary and Secondary schools.
RHET Fife CI's core activity is organising bespoke farm visits, with a number of farms in the area and a network of volunteer farmers and their families who kindly give their time to support RHET.
A farm visit can support many areas of the curriculum such as environmental studies, IT and business studies, technology, science, mathematics and enterprise. It supports the principles of A Curriculum for Excellence and complements many initiatives such as Eco Schools, Determined to Succeed and Health Promoting Schools.
We carry out regular risk assessments of all participating farms to the standard recommended in the Health and Safety Executive’s Guidelines on Educational Excursions. Around two weeks prior to the actual visit, the class teacher will visit the farm with our Project Co-ordinator to meet the farmer, walk the route and check over the risk assessment.
NB: Limited funding is available to cover transport costs for Farm Visits.
To book please visit the Farm Visit page, or contact the RHET Fife CI Project Co-ordinator (see bottom of page).
For Nursery, Primary and Secondary schools. Also see Nursery Resource Box.
RHET Fife CI has a network of trained RHET volunteer classroom speakers, made up of volunteer farmers from the local area, who can visit your school and bring farming and the countryside to life. Once a booking has been confirmed, the speaker will contact the teacher to discuss the format, content of the session and curriculum links.
Some ideas are:
- The story of milk, from cow to carton
- A day in the life of a farmer
- Scottish agriculture
- From farm to fork
- Recycling on the farm
- Careers in the countryside
These are only suggestions and all talks are tailored to meet individual needs.
To book please visit the Classroom Talks page, or contact the RHET Fife CI Project Co-ordinator (see bottom of page).
Schools can order a range of curriculum-linked classroom resources direct from RHET. We have a number of interactive materials covering subjects such as meat production, farming across the seasons, standard grade Geography and a newly-developed Higher Biology online resource.
All RHET resources are FREE to schools in Scotland. Please see the Resources page of our website for the full list.
The following resources are available specifically to the RHET Fife CI area:
Nursery Resource Box:
For Nursery schools and classes.
We have an Early Years Resource Box, which is usually provided in conjunction with a classroom speaker.
This is a treasure chest for children! Filled with dressing-up clothes, CDs, DVDs, toys, puppets, books and farm products, it gives children an early experience of what is seen and heard on the farm and farming life in general.
The classroom speaker will bring the box to the school or nursery (usually on a Monday) and talk to the children about food and farming for about 15 minutes. The box will then be left with the establishment for two weeks and collected on the second Friday by the Project Co-ordinator.
To book, please contact the RHET Fife CI Project Co-ordinator (see bottom of page).
Mabel the Milking Cow:
For Nursery and Primary schools
Mabel is a life-size fibreglass milking cow who travels in a horse box and can visit primary and nursery schools with suitable access. Mabel is provided in conjunction with a classroom speaker - usually her farmer - who will give a talk on dairy farming and milk production and give pupils the opportunity to “milk” the cow.
To book, please contact the RHET Fife CI Project Co-ordinator (see bottom of page).
As well as our farm visits, speakers and resources, RHET also run a number of events and curriculum-based projects throughout the year.
Visit our Project & Events page for more details.
NEWS FROM RHET FIFE CI
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CONTACT RHET FIFE CI
If you would like to arrange a farm visit or classroom talk for your school, or for any other information, please contact the local Project Co-ordinator:
Carole Brunton
Tel: 01333 310 523
E-mail: fife@rhet.org
