The National Farmers’ Union of Wales (NFU Cymru) will stream two food and farming lessons to schools across Wales next month, with the option of delivery in the Welsh language.
The lessons will be available in both the English and Welsh languages, and are designed for children between the ages of seven and 11 years old.
In collaboration with NFU Education, the two live lessons will be streamed on Wednesday, June 21, as part of the union’s annual Welsh Farming Week.
To enhance the learning experience, NFU Cymru said, curriculum-aligned, bilingual resources will also be made available to schools. Cross-curricular tasks will also be provided, with the aim of providing an extension to the live lesson learning.
NFU Cymru deputy president, Abi Reader, said the union wants to “bring the farmyard to the classroom” and provide an opportunity for every school in Wales to join the learning in “an interactive way”.
“The aim of the lessons will be about re-engaging pupils with Welsh food and farming and giving them an insight into what happens on a working farm – all while helping teachers to deliver the new curriculum for Wales,” she said.
“We are hoping to engage with thousands of pupils through this initiative and help further promote the Welsh language by having a dedicated Welsh language lesson in the afternoon.”
Lessons
The live lesson taught through the English language will be streamed at 11.00am on the day, with the lesson in the Welsh language being streamed at 2.00pm.
The lessons will be hosted by two former Welsh NFU Student and Young Farmer Ambassadors, Erin McNaught and Sioned Davies.
They will teach for approximately 45 minutes and will provide insights into various farming practices – such as lambing, shearing and rounding-up sheep.
There will also be a live on-farm presentation, as well as a 15-minute question and answer session, answering all the questions pupils may have from the classroom, NFU Cymru said.
The union is hoping to build on its “hugely popular” Science Farm Live initiative, which saw over 4,500 participating schools.
NFU Cyrmu said it is “hoping to harness the expertise of NFU Education and provide a bespoke offering in Wales, making the learning experience inclusive to every pupil whether in an English or Welsh speaking class”.
