Children at Stanstead Nursery & Primary School in Rise Park have planted over one hundred trees in their school grounds, donated by The Woodland Trust.
Teacher Sarah Carpenter helped to coordinate the event and said, “We are delighted to have received over 100 saplings from the Woodland Trust as part of their Trees for Schools campaign. We have recently started an Eco and Gardening Club at Stanstead to look after our allotment and start work towards our first Eco Schools Green Flag. We hope this will be a great first project to get the children excited about growing things and looking after the environment.”
Pupil Freya Pullen age 8 said she enjoyed taking part, “We have been choosing trees from the buckets and putting them in the holes that Mr Ross has dug. It is good to plant trees because they grow fruit and they are good for wildlife. I hope my tree will grow big and help the environment!”
Fellow pupil Emily Saunders, age 10 said, “I think it’s a really good thing that we are planting trees, they give us oxygen and that’s good for us and the environment. Trees can live for a long time, like the Robin Hood Tree (The Major Oak) and we should take care of them whenever we can. Planting the trees today has also been a lot of fun. I look forward to seeing my tree in years to come when it has grown. The trees we are planting all have things that can be harvested from them, and small children can learn a lot from them as they grow and change.”
Head Teacher Tanya Smith said that the school will cherish and care for the trees. “It is wonderful to have had the opportunity to plant so many trees in one go. Not only can children learn about nature and how to care for the environment watching our saplings grow, but these trees will be a legacy children can be proud of for many years to come.”
