05 News The latest from the Seabird team and what we have been working on!
Collaboration with SQA
Marine Loan Boxes
In our last members’ magazine, we shared news of our Education Officer’s (Andrew) collaboration with the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) to develop curriculumlinked approved coursework. Our first set of coursework (which was based around assessing species distribution down a rocky shoreline) has now been supplemented with, a new set of resources entitled “Assessing plastic pollution on a beach”.
Here at the Seabird Centre, education is central to our mission to help conserve and protect seabirds and marine wildlife. We want to inspire people of all ages to learn about Scotland’s seas and the creatures that live in it.
Most beaches around the world will have some plastic pollution washed up. Much of this will be small, as a lot of plastic is spilled into the ocean as small beads (known as ‘nurdles’) on their way to be processed. Larger plastic items will break up over time into smaller pieces and be deposited in sand and mud. Using the sand on a beach as a natural collector of plastics, samples can be taken and the mass and distribution of plastic waste determined on a sandy shoreline. Using our new SQA-approved guides (one for pupils and one for teachers), National 5 Environmental Science students (and indeed Geography and Biology students) can follow instructions to collect multiple sand samples from the beach in a structured way, filter these for traces of plastic and measure the mass of the plastic found.
To help us deliver this objective, we have developed loan boxes, which are available for schools and community groups across Scotland to borrow free of charge. The ability to handle objects and use the senses can often lead to a more memorable learning experience. We are anticipating that our loan boxes will be of particular interest to schools and organisations that are unable to visit the Centre in person or that live far from the coast. Each box contains marine-related real and replica items, books, toys, activities and reference materials chosen to complement one another. The contents are fully supported with teacher’s notes and curriculum linked classroom activities. It is our hope that these marine loan boxes will bring the wonders of the seaside into the lives of kids who have not had the opportunity to experience this before. More information is available on the learning section of our website. www.seabird.org/learning/resources
The aim of the investigation is to examine the distribution of plastic waste on a beach. Students are also prompted to draw conclusions and explore ideas as to how the problem may be tackled. All of our SQA approved guides can be found on the ‘Learning’ section of our website. Scottish Seabird Centre magazine
