Is it a plane, is it a bird, it's both of them!
High flyers of the future learned all about birds and planes at Slimbridge Wetland Centre on Monday 14-November 2011.
Airbus graduates from Filton and the Slimbridge Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust (WWT) education team ran a “bird vs plane” activities day. Over 80 children from Stoke Lodge and Holy Family Primary Schools learnt about topics such as the forces of flight and migration.
During the day the children explored the grounds of Slimbridge learning about the incredible journeys migratory species of birds undertake. They also discovered the importance of wing shape and took part in a fun paper plane competition run by the Filton Airbus graduates and had the chance to win prizes, look at aircraft parts and ask questions.
Mrs Rowland, a teacher from Stoke Lodge Primary School in Patchway said, “It’s been a fantastic day and the children have really enjoyed it. Trips like this are beneficial to the children as they create memories they won’t forget and they then learn from these memories.”
Jack Dobie, 7 said, “Today has been loads of fun, I liked making the planes and racing them against each other and it was cool seeing all of the birds”.
Sue Porter, learning manager at WWT Slimbridge, said: “It was interesting for all us to examine the differences and similarities between feathered and mechanical flight. Here at Slimbridge we have birds which complete some awe-inspiring journeys when on migration, the children enjoyed getting close to these birds and taking part in the paper aeroplane competition.”
Airbus is a corporate patron of the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust and shares its commitment to the environment, education and the enhancement of people’s lives that comes through being close to nature.
