Forth Valley CI

RHET Forth Valley Countryside Initiative covers the Clackmannan, Falkirk and Stirling Council Areas.

Our aim is to provide unbiased information on food production, agriculture and the countryside.

All of our services are FREE to schools and we are often able to provide funding towards cost of bus travel.

We offer a number of ways to add value to your teaching on farming, food and the countryside in your local area...

FARM VISITS

For Primary and Secondary schools.

RHET Forth Valley CI has a number of farms in the Falkirk, Stirling and Clackmannanshire areas. 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.

Last year RHET Forth Valley CI facilitated 37 farm visits.

To book please click here to visit the Farm Visit page, or contact the RHET Forth Valley CI Project Co-ordinator (see bottom of page).

CLASSROOM SPEAKERS

For Nursery, Primary and Secondary schools. Also see Early Years Resource Box and Forth Vallerie.

We have a number of trained classroom speakers 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.

Last year RHET Forth Valley CI facilitated 106 classroom speaker talks.

To book please click here to visit the Classroom Speaker page, or contact the RHET Forth Valley CI Project Co-ordinator (see bottom of page).

RESOURCES

RHET has a range of curriculum-linked resources available FREE to schools.

Please see the resources page of our website for a list.

The following resources are available in the Forth Valley CI area:

RHET “Working Countryside” Resource Box:

For Primary schools

There are RHET “Working Countryside” resource boxes in each Education Authority area.

For details of how to obtain a box, please contact the RHET Forth Valley CI Project Co-ordinator (see bottom of page).

Healthy Eating Workshops:

For Primary and Secondary schools

We can provide a limited number of healthy eating workshops each year so please book early to avoid disappointment. The workshop is split into four “stations”, one for each of the four main food groups - cereals, dairy, fruit and vegetables and meat. Pupils are split into groups and spend some time at each station (the time depends on numbers, but around 10 minutes) looking where the food comes from, the processes it goes through from farm to plate and how it fits into a healthy diet.

To book, please contact the RHET Forth Valley CI Project Co-ordinator (see bottom of page).

Forth Vallerie:

For Nursery and Primary schools

Forth Valley CI has their very own life-size milking cow called Forth Vallerie. On wheels and transported in her own horse trailer, Vallerie can visit primary and nursery schools with suitable access. Vallerie travels with the Dairy Box, containing resources relevant to milk production and dairy products and a classroom speaker, who will give a 30 minute talk on dairy farming and milk production and give pupils the opportunity to “milk” the cow.

To book, please contact the RHET Forth Valley CI Project Co-ordinator (see bottom of page).

Early Years 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 Forth Valley CI Project Co-ordinator (see bottom of page).

PROJECTS & COMPETITIONS

As well as our farm visits, speakers and resources, RHET also run a number of competitions and curriculum-based projects throughout the year...

• Farmhouse Breakfast Week:
As part of the wider Farmhouse Breakfast Week promotion, the HGCA and Tesco sponsor a recipe competition for Primary 6 and 7. Pupils are asked to devise a healthy breakfast recipe using local produce, where possible. The pupil who devises the winning recipe wins a healthy breakfast for his or her class and an all-expenses paid trip to a local farm. The winning entry from Forth Valley goes forward to the national final.

Details of the competition are circulated to schools in October with a closing date for entries in mid November.

• Count & Grow
The Clydesdale Bank sponsors the Count & Grow project, which is aimed at primary children working towards the first level of numeracy in A Curriculum of Excellence. This maths and numeracy project is based around planting and growing potatoes and involves counting, weighing and measuring. Classes taking part can choose to enter the associated competitions, but entry is not compulsory. There are two prizes - one for the school with the "heaviest crop", and the second for the winning project submission based on the provided worksheets.

RHET Forth Valley CI will provide all the materials for the project, including a supporting farmer and a briefing session for teachers.

Schools are asked to express interest in the project in December, followed by a briefing in February and the potato planting.

NEWS & EVENTS

Click here for a copy of the latest RHET Forth Valley CI Schools Newsletter (Spring 2010)

CONTACT RHET FORTH VALLEY CI

Please contact Nick Forsyth if you would like to organise a farm visit, classroom speaker or for any other of RHET's resources and projects:

Tel: 0131 335 6226
E: nickf@rhass.org.uk