It is vital we inspire and educate the next generation about bogs. Collaborating with the Poetry Society and the South West Peatland Partnership the project has experimented with ways of engaging primary school children with poetry and peatlands. A set of education resources has been created so schools can get involved.
In association with RENEW, The Poetry Society worked with poets Poppy-Jayne Jones and Jonah Coren to run workshops with the South West Peatland Partnership in primary schools in and around Plymouth. Based on these workshops they developed and tested the education resources, while poet Clare Shaw also developed resources, drawing on their experience running bog workshops in a range of settings. The workshops and teaching resources use bogs to link primary school curriculum priorities in English, Science and Geography.
Above: Nick Heather from the Dartmoor National Park/ South West Peatland Partnership explores the ‘bog in a box’ with pupils from primary schools in Plymouth. (Photo: Laura Ludtke for The Poetry Society). Pupils learn about maps with Jonny Robinson-Noades from Dartmoor National Park / South West Peatland Partnership. (Photo: Laura Ludtke for The Poetry Society)
We have shown how children can connect with nature through hands on learning and the creative use of language. Bog-based poetry allowed children to situate themselves in the landscape and understand the peat ecosystem, to empathise with the wildlife and learn new things about themselves.
Above: Pupils from Primary Schools in Plymouth try their hand at poetry with Poppy Jayne Jones and Jonah Corren (Photo: Laura Ludtke for The Poetry Society)
As well as the work with primary schools, the collaboration with The Poetry Society has created informal learning opportunities for children and young adults. This includes new writing by Foyle Young Poet Freya Gillard reflecting on the Bog Talk day in Exeter, the creation of the Bog Challenge on Young Poets Network, and an online workshop for young poets, run by Foyle Young Poet Jennie Howitt. These outcomes reflect the appetite for peatland poetry, as well as the way the resources created by Bog Talk can be developed and taken forward in different contexts.
