Farming Challenge Awards
Our Food Growing Projects
One of the objective’s of our charity, Newark and Nottinghamshire Agricultural Society, is to help local children appreciate from an early age that food is a basic and essential requirement for a healthy life and should be enjoyed, and to discover where our food comes from, how it is produced and raise awareness of career opportunities within the farming industry.
A recent survey conducted by the British Nutrition Foundation revealed 1 in 5 school children aged 5 to 11 believe fish fingers are made from chicken, cheese comes from a plant, pasta grows on trees and it takes ten years to grow a carrot, which is really alarming!
Meal In A Wheelbarrow
St Peter’s Crosskeys Academy, Farndon
Our Projects
Newark and Nottinghamshire Agricultural Society have created a completely new and FREE Educational Programme for local school children. Our Farming Challenge Awards are an exciting, hands on, practical experience and teach children how to grow their own food and learn what plants need to grow and thrive.
We have over twenty exciting projects to choose from for Primary to Secondary age groups, ranging from Meal In a Wheelbarrow to growing some simple salad crops Hydroponically (without soil) ? The excitement on the faces of children as they plant seeds and seedlings and harvest their produce is a joy to behold.
Every child who participates receives a Farming Challenge Award certificate and pin badge.Our Education Officer will help your school to deliver a successful project and provide you with resources and support materials too.
Listed below you will find our current projects, which can all be adapted to suit all age groups and learning abilities.
Meal in a Wheelbarrow – Grow a selection of vegetables, herbs and flowers in a wheelbarrow, which together will make one, two or three or more tasty and nutritious meals.
Pizza Garden – Grow everything you need to make a tasty pizza, herbs, tomatoes, garlic and more…
Brussel Sprouts – We all love a Brussel sprout right? Champion the poor old sprout!
Herbal Medicine – Research medicinal plants, history, folk lore, create a product(s).
It’s a Wrap – Design a series of healthy wraps using ingredients you can obtain from local farmers. Investigate the food constituents, E.g. Salt, sugar, fat, content, etc.
What’s Living in Your Gut? – Investigate how different food can alter the bacteria that live in your gut and how this can impact on your health. What food products contain “good” bacteria?
Hydroponics – What on earth is hydroponics? Design a hydroponic structure to crow simple salad crops, looking at different methods and comparing growth rates.
Strawberry Cream Tea – Investigate the ingredients required for a strawberry cream tea and the types of farming necessary. E.g. Fruit, dairy, crops, etc.
Advertising the County Show – Can you design an advertising campaign for the Nottinghamshire County Show. E.g. Radio Jingle, Social Media blast, You Tube documentary, website.
Documentary Film Maker – Create a short video, no more than five minutes long, about an issue in farming today. E.g. Brexit, food provenance, ethical animal husbandry, etc. Talk to local farmers.
Funky Plates – Series of meals that are nutritious, but fun to look at the same time to encourage fussy kids to eat.
Farming Hero – Focus on a single type of farming and investigate the products that can be produced and the related health benefits. E.g. Dairy, Poultry, Sheep, etc.
Healthy School Lunch – Design a selection of healthy packed lunches. Look at the nutritional content and affect it has on the body versus processed food. E.g. Turkey Twizzlers.
Growing Our Community – Improve an area of land within school grounds or local community, so you can grow some tasty edible food, or maybe keep a few chickens too?
Animal Champion – Choose an animal such as a sheep or a chicken. How many products can this animal produce for us? E.g. Eggs, feathers, meat, or wool. Investigate animal husbandry.
Food Miles – Investigate the produce that is farmed within X miles radius of own school, and the products that are made.
A Farmer’s Life – Take a series of photographs to document a year in the life of a local farmer.
Wonder Wellies – Grow herbs or potatoes or other vegetables in your wellies. Investigate different growing mediums and conditions.
We Invite You To Partner With Us
Our children and society are becoming more disconnected than ever from the countryside. Time outdoors in daylight has been proven to improve mental health, boost self-esteem, help people with mental health problems return to work, improve physical health, and reduce social isolation.
We hope you will choose to participate in our Education Programme. There is NO financial cost for any of the services we provide. Please contact our Education Officer for further details of how we may be of help to you and your school.
The Office For National Statistics conducted a report Measuring National Well-being: Insights into children’s mental health and well-being, which found mental health issues in young people are on the increase. The report also states children risk delays in their emotional and social development because they spend so much time in the virtual world. 10% of children aged between 5 to 16 years now have a diagnosed mental health problem.
Mind, a mental health charity, recently released Feel Better Outside, Feel Better Inside , a report which included new research from the University of Essex. Their findings show the many benefits of spending just 15 minutes outside with nature every day for mental well being.
CHALK TO FORK
A Community Education Programme for young and old, part of the charitable work of
Newark and Nottinghamshire Agricultural Society - founded 1799
Registered Charity No: 514080
