Day 1
School #1: Prince of Wales First School, Dorchester
Easing into Day 1 with a gentle cycle up the road from County Hall to Prince of Wales First
Some (very friendly) baggage handlers were hard at work and a full-scale airport security procedure was in place for all pupils entering the school. Turns out today was the start of a fortnight of globally-themed work to tie-in to the world cup. All staff were in fancy dress, so just a normal day for Prince of Wales school.
Anyway, Reg and I were there to find out about their eco work so we tracked down Air Marshall, I mean Mr, MacBean who coordinates all things eco. Escaping a Literacy lesson, three accomplished Eco Committee members - Reece, Sophie and Jasmine - showed Reg and I around the school.
The machine and products are provided by Delphis Eco. The school caretaker has switched to using these for all his school cleaning, and he assured me that as well as being low-waste, eco-friendly and good value, they really do the job!
In the foyer the children showed me their recycling collection box from Terracycle. Reg peered in and saw all kinds of things - wet wipe packets, spray heads from squirty bottles, caps from cleaning products.....Terracycle can recycle all these things into something new, and they also pay the school for sending them such useful materials....winner!
The school also collect used stamps and batteries. If you bump into someone from Prince of Wales school, ask them how many times all the unwanted batteries kicking around in our homes could stretch round the Earth......the answer is staggering!
After that it was off to look outside and first stop were these lovely new members of the school! There are 8 hens, some which were bought as adults and some that the children have reared from chicks this year. Everyone is looking forward to eating their eggs and maybe even selling them to parents. These ladies clearly enhance school life!
Prince of Wales school have beautifully developed, wildlife-friendly school grounds and loads of spaces for learning outdoors.
The Farrington Meadow was bussing with bees visiting the clover and knapweed.
Inside the roundhouse, Reg found this nest (don't worry, it's one from last year!).
The children have done a lot to create habitats for nature in the school grounds. Reece was delighted that this sapling, which he planted as a tiny whip last year, is now as tall as he is! 
Lastly we walked by their Eco-Schools Green Flag - not doing much fluttering today!
The children are very proud to be part of a school that is so committed to learning and looking after the environment.
Ever wondered what the Eco-Schools logo represents? I hadn't until now. We discussed what the Eco-Schools logo might represent - we thought it must be something to do with the world and learning, but I had to confess I didn't really know.
By happy coincidence, that very question was answered later in the day in a Twitter post by Eco-Schools Scotland. Thank you for clearing that up!
Back in the classroom, Year 3 played the 'Resources Challenge' board game. It's a great activity for thinking about the 3 Rs and how we can use the world's resources more carefully. Thank you to Bristol Sustainable City for putting together such a great resource. You can download it yourself from the Sustainable Learning website.
Read more about Eco-Schools at Prince of Wales and the GSWTD workshop on the school website:
My final task before leaving the school was to present Mr MacBean with a copy of the beautiful book The Lost Words.
Copies of the book are being donated to all primary phase schools in Dorset thanks to a Crowdfunder campaign by local conservationists. Over the next few months, a gang of energetic volunteers will be delivering them to schools all round the county. Follow @dorsetandbeyond to find out more!
Due to a camera failure, there isn't a photo of the grand presentation - if you could just imagine it for me that would be great :)
