The Franconian weather this week has been sufficiently underwhelming, however that did not stop the Early Years 3 and 4 from having a delightful time at the Nuremberg Zoo on Tuesday.
The visit is linked to their current IPC unit ‘Animals’. The children got to see the animals they’ve been reading about, in a physical environment. Such experience helps students get a more comprehensive understanding of how different animals need different kinds of habitats to survive. They are also able to piece together their learning of faunal attributes by grouping animals based on their features.
“Augmenting classroom lessons with practical visits such as this, helps with Authentic Learning,” EY4A Homeroom Teacher Anna Franze explains the link to the FIS tenet of High-Quality Learning.
The students walked around with maps of the area. Parent and staff volunteers were chaperoning, so the children could have the flexibility to channel their inner adventurers and explore all sections of the zoo they fancied.
In addition to seeing the animals, the students learned about the coexistence of humans with the natural world, and our responsibility towards the wellbeing of both the living and the non-living environment. They also learned about endangered species and their rehabilitation.
Since this was the Early Years’ first field trip this year, they were especially excited. “The kids absolutely enjoyed themselves. It’s no surprise that most of them were exhausted at the end of the day,” Ms. Franze says.
Talking about their visit, Early Years students Matthias and William promptly begin naming animals like tigers, polar bears, geckos, and seals. “We walked up and down a lot of hills and we were scared but we’d love to see the animals again,” Matthias says enthusiastically. When asked what was the best part of the trip, both the children exclaim unanimously, “Gorillas!”
