Project to restore oysters around UK coastline launches school lesson packs to inspire children to protect oceans
An ambitious restoration project working to help restore healthy, resilient coastal waters around the UK, is aiming to educate over 12,000 students about the ocean through new education programme released today (Thursday 3 March).
The Wild Oysters Project education packs – created by conservationists and education specialists at ZSL (Zoological Society of London) and Blue Marine Foundation (BLUE) – support the national science curriculum and encourage children (aged 8-14 years old) to care for the marine environment and spread the word about the importance of a native oyster population in the UK.
Celine Gamble, Wild Oysters Project Manager, ZSL said; “Across the UK native oyster populations have declined by over 95%. Despite their small size oysters are capable of filtering 200 litres of water a day helping to clean our seas. Healthy oyster reefs are hugely productive and support an array of marine biodiversity. We have created new teacher resources to enhance and support classroom teaching by providing real-world context to science, geography and citizenship topics within the local environment for classrooms across the UK.”
Available to download in a PDF or a presentation format, the resources give teachers the tools to highlight the significance of a healthy ocean to their students – helping them to understand that oceans are home to 90% of our planet’s wildlife and why it’s important they absorb one third of the carbon dioxide that we produce.
Created to ensure students recognise the reasons why oysters declined and how these tiny superheroes can help the marine environment in future, the lesson plans include ‘the variety of life that lives in the ocean’, and ‘nine ways students can reduce ocean plastic’.
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Posted On: 04/03/2022