| Pond Dipping at JAGS
Year 10 pupils willingly give up a day in the summer holidays to help our Environment manager, David Benson, show pupils from Turney School for children with special needs the joys of pond-dipping.
The girls noticed the children’s natural curiosity and interest in the pond-dipping which made the day very rewarding.
'
'Working with Turney School was an amazing experience, but not without its challenges. We were pond dipping, which already raised some problems, especially the risk of children to fall into the water. Starting off we had to each wear a pair of gloves to protect against potentially harmful bacteria in the water. Some of the children felt uncomfortable with other people touching their hands, which made it difficult to help them. Even if you got them on, they would be instantaneously removing them. But once they got hold of a net and a tray of water, they were keen to get started. You had to explain the process much more clearly than with the children from Bessemer. The children were very cautious, so you needed to help them along, by holding the net with them and physically scooping up the water. However they became more and more confident, and were thrilled when they found something. The girl I was with spent ages in awe of the newts she’d caught, and was determined to find more. Three newts, two water boatman, a pond snail later, we finished for the day. I felt I learned a lot from the experience and was inspired by the amazing work the teachers from Turney School did. I thoroughly enjoyed it and would love to help more when I reach 6th form.
Alice Gane, Year 11
I volunteered to help in the pond-dipping activity with the children from Bessemer Grange and Turney Special School. It was an absolute treat and a wonderful experience, the children were very friendly and thoroughly enjoyed searching for underwater creatures inside the pond. The highlight of the day was catching the newts. The children were absolutely thrilled holding the newts in their hands and counting the spots! The snail racing was also a hit amongst the children, with "Tom" the snail being an outright champion! I enjoyed myself just as much as the children did, maybe even more!
Aisha Hossain, Year 11
|
