Local school wants to volunteer at our allotments

[Squash64]

I've had an email from a teacher at a local comprehensive school asking if a group of pupils could come to our allotments in February and March.
This is the email -

The aim of both days will be for these pupils to contribute to the local and wider community by completing any kind of voluntary work. Therefore I am writing to find out if it would be possible for you to offer us any kind of voluntary project for both or one of these days. It would be entirely up to you how many you could cater for and on which day, but I think it would be worthwhle for both involved.

I have said yes, but really don't have a clue as to what they could do on the site! There will be 10 - 20 pupils from years 10 and 11 and they will spend about 5 hours with us.

Has anyone had experience of anything like this?  Or any ideas for things they could do?

[Squash64]

[elvis2003]

any chance of a bit of space where they could plant something maybe...flowering plants in a border perhaps? Its hard to think of jobs at these quiet time of year,im sure youll come up with something once its warmer.
maybe the teacher has an idea in mind?
sounds fun!

[goodlife]

Uhh...I don't want to dampen the mood...but...Health and Safety issues...
Who supply the tools, who insure the students while doing 'something' etc... ::)
Otherwise I think is exellent idea..how about litter picking...pricking out seedlings..tidying hedges, nothing drastic but just chopping off bits that are sticking out ::)..clearing spent winter veg off..emptying compostbins. Is there anything to give fresh coat of paint over? Or maybe even let them loose with few different colour paints and allow them to 'decorate' some surface. How about making some scarecrows ready for the growing season?..or making some insect hotels with old chopped up canes and cut up lemonade bottles..same time it will be biology lessong when you can have conversation why, how etc. ;)
You could have fire in bin to keep warm..all waist wood collected and burned away..maybe even barbeque lunch.
I know is more work for you than what they actually achive by helping...but it just might educate youngsters a little and maybe you are the one who plants that one 'seed' that grows onto a future allotmenteer ;D ;)

[ACE]

Get in touch with the forestry or somebody that will donate slips of any british hedgerow plants and get them to plant a hedge that they can show their kids when they grow up. I done a similar scheme a couple of years ago. An adult makes the planting holes and the kids put them in and refill. You only need small holes. Don't kill it off with scaremongering health and safety issues. The school would have already got this in hand. I had a whole school lined up wth their slips, I made the slits in the ground and they all put them in and tamped them down. A local  shop donated squash and bisquits the kids loved it. They all went home happy with some veg for mum. Also vandalism went down considerably afterwards.

[grawrc]

Is that the GCSE years? The other issue, of course, is Child Protection, but hopefully the teacher will have given some thought to that.

I think you would need to identify a number of small projects - scarecrow-making could be one, painting and maintenance, sign-making, planning the crop rotation, preparing beds for different crops, composting, - there are millions!! Mending fences, clipping hedges, preparing lunch for the group using allotment produce.....

if they are going to be there for 5 hours you might start with a wee presentation about the allotments and housekeeping stuff like where the toilets are and arrangements for lunch then split them into groups for maybe 4 or 5 different activities (depending how many are involved).  You could decide on the activities with the teacher and groups and their chosen activities could be decided at school before the day. You'll also need to get plotholders - ideally 2 per group at least, who are willing to "offer" an activity and work with the groups. Each group could do 2 different activities.

the programme could be something like:

Session 1 - presentation      20 minutes
Session 2 - group session1   1hour 30 minutes
Session 3 - lunch                  40 minutes
Session 4 - group session 2  1 hour 30 minutes
Session 5 - plenary               1 hour a chance for them to put together a 5 minute presentation on what                      they've done, followed by their presentations.

[Borlotti]

We have a school site on our allotments, but the teacher comes with them and they are not allowed to do much.  I had some lovely strawberries last year but was told not allowed to give them to the children, but anyway I didn't have enough for them all.  They were only primary children so suppose it would be better for the years 10-11, but 5 hours is a bit long as they may get bored, or love it. Give it a go and see what happens.  5 hours is a long time for bored teenagers, but if they want to do it brilliant.

[betula]

The whole thing sounds like a nightmare    :(

I would not have liked all them kids on my allotment.

Suggest you ask neighbouring plot holders if they are OK about it.

I love kids really,not on my lottie though  ;D

[PurpleHeather]

Delightful idea.....What about the CIB checks though?

[Ellen K]

" The aim of both days "

:o :o :o

I love children ...............












but I couldn't eat a whole one.

Good Luck  :)

[grawrc]

Posted by: PurpleHeather    Posted on: Today at 18:27:33
Delightful idea.....What about the CIB checks though?

AFAIK it's OK to work with kids on a one-off basis provided they are supervised by school staff that have done the CIB stuff. We organised Get-a-job day every year for s2 (year9 ??) who worked with people from local businesses in school  all day to get a taste of what it was like being a joiner, electrician etc. The people from the various businesses didn't have police checks. Mind you Scotland could be different!!


If the kids are GCSE age then, at that stage in Scotland, they do a week's work experience out of school on placement and again the normal rules don't apply.

Anyway that's the school's responsibility!

[kt.]

Our primary school has taken on a half plot earlier this year.  The school has a gardening club that has been going a few years with raised beds in school grounds.  Sometimes the kids use the potting shed within our nursery.

[Trevor_D]

I've never had any experience of working with secondary school pupils at the allotment, but we've had groups from both our local primaries. One thing I would recommend is to meet the teacher(s) concerned before-hand to discuss the programme, and to take them round the site so that they have a rough idea of what facilities - and problems - there are.

Insurance is down to the school, although I assume you have public & employer's liability insurance yourself? That's not a problem. And I assume that even secondary schools are equipped with a first aid kit on a day out. Clearance for working with children isn't a problem either, unless you have unsupervised contact with them; the school will ensure that's covered, too.

Sounds fun! Keep us posted - I'd like to set up links with our two secondary schools as well.

[I love digging]

The CRB ruling is that no child should be alone with an adult without a CRB check.  The school should be fully aware of this and should be providing a suitable supervising adult. I'd want someone there for discipline measures as well.

Years 10 and 11 are 15 and 16 year olds, so I hope you're getting ones who have said they want to do this and preferably not ones who have either been told they have to do it or see this as the "easy option".

And I'd check that they will be wearing suitable clothing and footwear and realise that they will get dirty.
But I like ACE's idea of planting a hedge - although I'd get the kids digging the holes as well.

[goodlife]

Code Select Expand

although I'd get the kids digging the holes as well.
Ahh..yes, nothing beats 'good old' child labour ;D ;)...what a opportunity to get some 'not so nice' jobs done ;D

[Mrs Gumboot]

From experience of having them at work I'd say 5 hours is way too long. You really want them for about an hour and a half work time max, so maybe two hours to include getting ready at beginning & getting tidy at end. They do get bored, even at 15, especially if it involves manual labour or if the weather's bad.

Definitely meet up with the teachers beforehand to agree everything, including discipline boundaries. Sad to say that we've had several groups up & quite often the teachers regard it as a doss day with us taking care of the kids. Luckily we've had good kids up who've been interested and it's been a good couple of hours, but had it been otherwise I'm not sure the teachers would have been much help!

As has been pointed out CRB & the dreaded health and safety are entirely the school's responsibility. Agree what jobs you'll be doing & let them worry about it!

Visits have been most successful at work when it's been a small group once a month so they can actually see the progress of what they're planting.

[Digeroo]

The only experience I have is those on work experience in an office who usually come for one or two weeks.  They come alone so must be 16+.  But I have only had to deal with one or two at a time.  Dealing with 10-20 is a huge number I would suggest a smaller group. 

Like Grawc says plan the day very carefully so there is lots of variation.  Have some ideas of what they can achieve. 

I found that at that age they liked to be treated as equals.   So welcomes, hand shaking and being formally introduced to people goes down well, and being thanked for their efforts (if they make any).  Make tham feel important and useful.  But be very clear about the dos and don'ts.   

I would suggest that you need lots of volunteer adults to supervise so you can have small work groups.  Do you have some older allotmenteers who could do with some assistance? 

Don't allow the students to wander off behind the bikesheds!  My experience of supervision by teachers is very variable.  Sometimes they are excellent and sometimess they take this sort of thing as a good opportunity to do nothing for the day.