Think Food and Farming
Welcome to our Think Food and Farming section.
In this section you can:
- learn about our involvement in the Year of Food and Farming
- view our collection of model farms
- download our Farm visits Learning Day Host Guidance materials (for farmers)
Learning Days Ltd and the Year of Food and Farming
We have been commissioned to produce a Learning Day that supports visits to farms. Its purpose is to provide a day of learning on farming and the natural environment to enable children to get the most out of a visit to a farm. The materials can also be used to bring the topic into the classroom setting for those unable to visit a farm this year, but may be encouraged to do so in the forthcoming school year.
The Farm visits Learning Day is sponsored by Natural England and supported by The Co-operative, as part of the Year of Food and Farming. It is targeted at primary school children aged 7 to 11 and is available as a free download to all primary schools in England and Wales.
The main activity during the day is the creation of model farms by children, in groups, in their classroom. Four topics are covered and the themes of farming as a business and the importance of stewardship are common factors. The four topics are food production, landscape, biodiversity, access & recreation.
If you are a teacher in a primary school in England & Wales register now to receive your free Learning Day materials.
Our model farm collection
During the Farm visits Learning Day children create model farms based on their learning throughout the day. There have been some wonderful models created during the piloting phase. It is clear that children are fully engaged in this creative task and are producing well designed models. Children even become their own farm guides for ‘visitors’ to their farms during the final classroom session.
We have realised that, with such creativity in schools, it would be really good to allow schools to share the results of their pupils’ efforts with parents, other classes, other schools and in fact, everyone! Our gallery section is designed to allow schools to upload images of their model farms (all images are vetted before going live). Over the coming weeks and months more and more schools will be adding their photographs to this section. The Farm visits Learning Day materials were released to schools from 19 May 2008 so please allow time for schools to run their Learning Day and take photographs. You can search for images by any school alphabetically (+ postcode).
Click here to visit our model farm collection
Looking for a farm to visit?
Farms for Schools (FFS) aims to ensure that school trips to farms are safe, enjoyable and educationally worthwhile. All FFS members meet the required standards in the provision of facilities and educational resources for farm visits. These include Health and Safety, current employers liability insurance and adequate toilet and hand washing facilities. Livestock on farms have to be attended by a vet at regular intervals. Please visit their website www.farmsforschools.org.uk
Farm visits Learning Day - Host Guidance materials
This is a free downloadable resource for farmers hosting visits. The aim is to extend the classroom-based learning into the real farm environment to enhance children’s experiences and maximise the learning opportunities. Teachers will be able to continue the learning on their return to the classroom by relating the farm experience to the work previously carried out during the Learning Day.
The materials contain an explanation of the Learning Day and a list of activities that you may wish to include in your school visits’ programme for this age group. The activities are straightforward and reinforce the learning in a real life setting. They are an extension of the themes covered during the Learning Day. There is also guidance on sources of further information for planning and hosting school visits to farms. The development of these materials has been sponsored by Natural England and supported by The Co-operative.
Click here to download the Host Guidance material