From 24th - 26th June, Sustainable Merton Community Champion Ben delivered three assemblies on climate action to children at William Morris, Lonesome and Singlegate primary schools, with a mix of year groups, ranging from reception up to Year 6.
The talks covered the basics of climate science, the greenhouse effect, the impacts of climate change and actions we can take. Ben tells us more...
"During each of the assemblies, I talked the students through the basics of climate science and found that many of the students were already really knowledgeable, which was impressive.
We looked at the greenhouse effect and I challenged the students to explain this process from memory. Then we looked at the impacts of climate change and finally at the things we can do to stop it.
The children were brimming full of enthusiasm about the topic and full of knowledge. Many of them were already familiar with the metaphor of a blanket surrounding the earth and trapping in heat.
When it came to thinking about how to produce less CO2, we talked about all the different
ways we produce carbon dioxide in our daily lives. Some students commented that we breathe out CO2 from our bodies, and therefore do we need to stop breathing? No, we don't need to do that! But I explained that we do need to think about all the other ways we produce CO2 in our daily lives... For example, driving cars and flying in aeroplanes, and the ways we are responsible for other greenhouse gas emissions, such as methane from cows and the dairy industry.
On that topic, one student wondered how we can reduce the impact of cows, to which another student explained that we can try to eat less beef and think about substituting dairy products with alternatives. Well done guys – those are both really great solutions!"
Ben
Community Champion
If your school is interested in having Sustainable Merton lead an assembly on sustainability and environmental issues, please send an email to info@sustainablemerton.org outlining your request - including details of specific topics/issues you would like to see us cover.
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