Thursley National Nature Reserve Environmental Education Pack
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Thursley National Nature Reserve Environmental Education Pack www.naturalengland.org.uk 1 Thursley NNR Education Pack Contents The Education Pack 3 ■ Welcome to Thursley National Nature Reserve 4 ■ About Natural England 4 ■ Thursley NNR 4 ■ Outdoor learning 5 ■ Getting there and parking 5 ■ Facilities 5 ■ Map of reserve and activity areas 6 ■ Species Timeline 7 ■ Teacher’s preparation 8 Minibeast Madness! 9 ■ Teacher’s notes 9 ■ Activities 11 ■ Follow up work & cross-curricular links 15 ■ Adaptations for other key stages 15 ■ Worksheet 15 Fabulous Flora ■ Teacher’s notes 17 ■ Activities 19 ■ Follow up work & cross-curricular links 24 ■ Adaptations for other key stages 24 ■ Worksheet 25 Heathland Habitats ■ Teacher’s notes 26 ■ Activities 28 ■ Follow up work & cross-curricular links 33 ■ Adaptations for other key stages 33 ■ Worksheets 34-37 Risk Assessment -Things to consider 38 The Countryside Code & Contacts 40 Further information 41 © Natural England 2015. The contents of this pack may only be reproduced for the purposes for which it is intended, or with direct permission from Natural England. Cover photo © Joanna Carter. All images reproduced with permission of the copyright holder. All rights reserved. Written by Lucy Gummer and designed by Marcus Wehrle (Surrey Wildlife Trust). Edited by Natural England staff including Joanna Carter and James Giles. 2 Thursley NNR Education Pack The Education Pack Our Aims The aim of this education pack is to give teachers the information and the confidence they need to take their class to Thursley National Nature Reserve (NNR) for an outdoor learning experience. There are three sessions outlined in the pack, each of which is designed to fill a half day visit. You can combine them to make a full day’s activities or visit multiple times; revisiting a wild place at different times of year can be a rewarding learning experience in itself. The sessions in this pack will act as a plan our work on the reserve, as well as ensure comprehensive guide to your lesson planning. that you won’t clash with other school visits For each, a key activity addresses statutory intending to use the same areas. requirements from the national curriculum and Loan boxes extra activities are suggested which may extend the children’s learning. A full list of the resources Natural England has a loan box available for each you will require is given at the beginning of each session, containing the key resources required plan. to teach the lessons. You can arrange to borrow the relevant loan box by emailing the Reserve The pack is aimed at key stage 2, but each Manager James Giles on the email address above. session also has ideas for adapting its contents You will need to pick up the box from his office for other key stages. In some cases cross- at Bowlhead Green, and return it to him after curricular links are detailed, in others ideas for your visit. follow-up work are given. Inventories for each loan box are given in the The session titles are Minibeast Madness, lesson plans – please ensure that all equipment Fabulous Flora, and Heathland Habitats, built is returned to us in good condition. If there are around the study of invertebrates, plants, and losses or breakages, please inform James Giles habitats respectively. These subject areas enable upon return. you to cover many parts of the curriculum while drawing on the children’s instinctive interest in the natural world. N.B. Lessons can be run without the loan box. This will require you to plan ahead and ensure Organising a visit that you provide the necessary resources. Thursley NNR is free to visit and open to the public. If you are planning a visit with your class, please contact James Giles, Reserve Manager, on James. [email protected],uk (full contact details on last page of pack). This will help us to 3 Thursley NNR Education Pack ns wki n Ha st/ Jo e Tru ildlif rey W © Sur Welcome to Thursley National Nature Reserve (NNR) Natural England is an independent public body that protects and improves England’s natural environment, while encouraging people to enjoy and get involved in their surroundings. It is our responsibility to see that England’s rich natural environment can adapt and survive for future generations to enjoy. Grass snake (Natrix natrix) England/ James Giles © Natural Working with children is an integral part of Natural England’s work to secure a sustainable Thursley NNR is one of the largest surviving future. Through exciting educational fragments of the heathland that was once opportunities, such as those offered by this much more extensive in Surrey. Most of this education pack, Natural England hopes children unique landscape has been lost through urban will become better informed and more eager to expansion and agriculture, making Thursley care for their environment. NNR’s 325 hectares of varied habitats all the more important. Not only does wildlife thrive in a mosaic of open dry heathland, peat bogs, ponds, and pine and deciduous woodlands, but humans too are able to experience a sense of wilderness that makes it hard to believe you are only one hour from London. The site is free to visit and open to the public, enabling walkers and wildlife enthusiasts alike to experience Thursley NNR’s delights; a sky sparkling with dragonflies on the wing, carnivorous plants lurking in the bog, migrant hobbies darting overhead and the purple flush of heather stretching to the far horizon. A long boardwalk loops through the soggiest parts of the reserve, while the dryer areas have clear pathways to follow. Ground nesting birds such as nightjars and woodlarks breed in the open dry heath areas, where the heather- nibbling caterpillars of silver studded blue 4 Thursley NNR Education Pack butterflies could become food for their chicks. and risk assessment before the day of the trip, Other scarce heathland and wetland birds living your class should be able to enjoy a safe and at Thursley are stonechats, Dartford warblers, exciting day out. curlews, shrikes and lapwings. All six of England’s native reptile species might Getting there be seen basking in the sun on bare ground and young heather; lizards and snakes are sure to & parking elicit excitement when they scuttle or slither away from approaching feet. Thursley NNR is located The snakes you might encounter are grass between the villages of Elstead snakes, smooth snakes, and adders. Of these and Thursley, south of Guildford in Surrey. only adders are venomous, although as they How to find us are not aggressive they are unlikely to pose any Not far from the A3, the main car park (The threat as long as they are not disturbed. The Moat) is south of Elstead on the Thursley Road, lizards you might encounter are common lizards, and can be found with post code GU8 6LW. sand lizards, and slow worms. Slow worms have evolved to be limbless, and so are often mistaken The car park is large enough for a coach to for snakes, but these legless lizards have visible be parked, or for multiple cars if parents are eyelids and are able to shed their tail. All six bringing their children directly to the reserve. species of reptile hibernate from November to Facilities March. The nearest public toilets are in Farnham Outdoor Learning (GU0 7PT), Godalming (GU8 6LW) and Frensham Outdoor learning experiences can be among Great Pond (GU10 2QB). The Waverley Borough the most memorable and enjoyable in a young Council website has details of these public person’s life, providing children with a chance to facilities (www.waverley.gov.uk). engage directly with the living inspiration for the Some schools have used a camping toilet which subjects taught in the curriculum. For teachers, is taken off site afterwards. Alternatively, you the cross-curricular applications of just one can hire portable toilets which can be placed visit to somewhere like Thursley NNR are almost temporarily in the Moat Car Park. Please contact endless. Provided that you undertake a site visit the Reserve Manager for details. 5 Thursley NNR Education Pack 6 ThursleyNNREducation Pack Map of Thursley NNR & Activity Areas Contact us Thursley National Nature Reserve The Barn, Lower House Road, Bowlhead Green, Surrey GU8 6NW 01428-685675 7 ThursleyNNREducation Pack Species Timeline April May June July August September october First dragonflies Early morning First damselflies emerge (four dew highlights orb Hobby leaves, Bell heather flowers Many dragonflies Common heather emerge (large red spotted chaser webs, look out for replaced by great on the wing (ling) flowers and common blue) and broad bodied spectacular orb web grey shrike chaser) of the wasp spider Grayling and Hobby (a falcon) Sand lizards egg Crossleaved heather Bog Asphodel in Autumn fungi start purple hair streak arrives laying flowers flower emerging butterflies on wing Spring migrant birds arriving (cuckoo, Redstart, Cotton grass Curlew chicks Common terns on whitethroats, in flower, also fledge ponds fishing spotted fly catcher, common lousewort swallow, swift, wheatears) Silver studded blue Raft spider found on Bog bean in flower butterfly emerges Silver studded blue ditches and ponds as an adult (end of butterflys hit peak month) Small copper Green tiger beetles Second emergence butterfly, red Early marsh orchids active small copper admiral, peacock, in flower tortoise shell Second emergence Spider hunting Hornet robber flies Reptiles emerged of Brimstone wasps out (our largest fly) butterflies Winter visiting birds Speckled wood Mottled beefly departing – red and orange tip active, wood tiger wings, field fares butterflies on wing beetle active Teacher’s Preparation What to Bring We advise teachers to bring the following for safety and to get the most from the visit: ■ Rucksack ■ First aid kit ■ Mobile phone ■ Camera ■ Pencils ■ Loose leaf paper ■ Clipboards ■ Hand gel/wet wipes ■ Water – children are likely to lose individual bottles when getting involved in hands-on activities ■ Several lengths of bright ribbon – this is for creating boundaries (see ‘Free Play’ below) ■ Tarpaulin/rugs for sitting on (optional) Use the resources checklists at the beginning of each activity before your visit to ensure that you have the materials required for the session(s) you will be teaching.