Two thousand three hundred children aged
ten and eleven, from 51 schools across Sussex and Surrey, visited the Ardingly
Showground [July 18] to discover more about where their food comes from
and all aspects of rural life.
At the seventh Connect with the
Countryside Day, pupils and their teachers had a brilliant day in the sunshine
gaining a better understanding of countryside issues, thanks to over 100 volunteers
from the South of England Agricultural Society.
Said Mr Hughes, Assistant Head Teacher
of Upper Beeding Primary School, “It’s a brilliant day! We come here every year
just for the children to experience rural life and agriculture and this day
brings all that – we are a rural school but a lot of our children still don’t
come into contact with the surrounding countryside.”
Said Mrs Lewis from Globe Primary in
Lancing, “I think it’s useful for the children to see how food is made because
they don’t actually know where it comes from.”
“We do now!” chipped in her pupils when she
was asked this question!
Four special zones included Livestock,
where children met a range of farm animals, from Sussex Beef bulls to chickens;
Horticulture and Food, where children learnt about healthy food, tasting local
tomatoes, fresh milk and honey and discovering how sausages, bread and butter
are made; and two Wildlife and Recreation zones also offered important
countryside topics, such as nature conservation, forestry and countryside
sports.
The Sheep Show, including sheep
shearing, a Pony Club display and a Birds of Prey demonstration also delighted
the children.
Said Derek Cleaver, the Society’s Education
Committee, “This exciting, interactive day, offered free to schools, captures
the very essence of the Society’s charitable and educational aims and we would
like to thank all who helped to make it such a success today.”
