Welcome to Blooming Schools, an Erasmus+ funded project dedicated to empowering secondary schools to be active and take action for nature.
The project’s objective is to improve biodiversity and to give young people in secondary schools the right tools, competences and skills to become environmental change-makers, raise awareness and take action with a dutiful approach. To achieve this, we formed this great partnership between schools, environmental NGOs and a youth organisation.
The project partners
Blooming Schools is led by BirdLife Malta in partnership with Friends of the Earth Malta, St Nicholas College Dingli Secondary, Sociedade Portuguesa para o Estudo das Aves (SPEA, BirdLife Portugal), Agrupamento de Escolas de Portela e Moscavide in Portugal, Hellenic Ornithological Society (HOS, BirdLife Greece) and Station Europe in Romania.
Here is a series of actions and resources the partners are working on:
☑️ Creating wildlife gardens in schools, accompanied by a step-by-step manual that everyone can use to improve green spaces in their communities
“A garden for wildlife is one that is created with the aim of attracting and supporting native wildlife in all forms. In schools, wildlife gardens are good places for students to connect with nature, actively engaging with nature during lessons, or passively just simply enjoying time in the garden.”
Check out this video about the process of creating a wildlife gardens and the schools’ involvement.
☑️ A series of activities in secondary schools connected with the Sustainable Development Goals and using a STEAM approach
You can get started by assessing your schools grounds using these surveys!
Teachers can carry out a series of activities featuring project-based activities aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) which can also lend to the STEAM approach. This catalogue enables educators to engage students with SDGs such as Life on Land (SDG 15), Sustainable Cities and Communities (SDG 11), and Quality Education (SDG 4). It also includes tools for assessing local biodiversity and tracking the positive impacts of student-led conservation efforts.
☑️ Online module for teachers
If you want to learn how to observe nature and create your own nature-based lessons, you can take this 90-minute online course. It will teach you how to use nature as a medium for delivering curriculum without harming the environment. This course is ideal for primary teachers, but secondary teachers can also benefit from it to become more comfortable with incorporating nature into their teaching.
Create and explore your school’s wildlife garden with students through this online training course! Gain practical skills and nature-based resources to inspire hands-on learning through STEAM, foster environmental awareness and promote biodiversity in your school grounds.
☑️ Strategy to engage students with ENGOs
We want to provide continuous opportunities for young people interested in nature, who want to use their time to volunteer for environmental NGOs. We are aiming to strengthen our strategy to engage students in secondary and post-secondary schools to join our Falko youth group at early stages.
☑️ Vlogging academy for sustainability
This tool empowers young changemakers to advocate for sustainability through the art of digital storytelling.
Check out what our young participants created during the youth exchange in Romania under the guidance of Station Europe in a fun, informative and interactive way.
If you are a secondary teacher interested to learn more and receive the activities we are piloting, get in touch with us on [email protected].
You can also watch all the videos made by youth and some tips about wildlife gardens and nature here.
