Biodiversity boosts KS3-5

Boost the biodiversity of your school grounds with one of our improvement projects:

For help choosing or getting started, just email us!

Visit TES to download our KS3-5 project pack containing all projects here.

Bees

Butterflies

Identify and count species of bees in green areas of grounds Plant pollinator-friendly plants and/or make a bee box Identify and count species of bees in new habitats Time of year: February-September Equipment: FSC bee identification chart, thermometer, plants and/or plastic drink bottle and bamboo sticks Curriculum links: sampling techniques, data manipulation and handling, data presentation, scientific attitudes and experimental skills, classification, statistical tests

Identify and count species of butterflies in green areas of grounds Plant meadow seeds to attract butterflies Identify and count species of butterflies in new habitat Time of year: Any time (summer term best) Equipment: meadow seeds, thermometer, FSC identification sheets Curriculum links: sampling techniques, data manipulation and handling, data presentation, scientific attitudes and experimental skills, classification, statistical tests

Mammals

Pondlife

Record species of mammals in an area of your grounds using photos, prints, and droppings Make hedgehog channels under your fences, build a hedgehog house, make a log pile to encourage small mammals Time of year: Any time Equipment: Crate, saw, logs, trowel, spade, stones, leaves, earth, sticks Curriculum links: sampling techniques, data manipulation and handling, data presentation, scientific attitudes and experimental skills, ecosystems, classification, statistical tests

Make a sink pond Pond dip to discover what species are inhabiting your new habitat Time of year: Early spring Equipment: thermometer, nets, small bucket, magnifying glass, teaspoons, FSC identification sheets or equivalent, an old sink or equivalent, spade, stones, gravel, small aquatic plants Curriculum links: sampling techniques, data manipulation and handling, data presentation, scientific attitudes and experimental skills, ecosystems, classification, statistical tests

Insects

Reptiles & amphibians

Survey a green area of your grounds for insect species Build a bug hotel, bury a bucket for beetles (and then dig it up a year later to check for inhabitants) Survey your green area for insect species again Time of year: March – October Equipment: FSC insect identification chart, flowerpots, thermometer, magnifying glass, small clear containers for holding insects Curriculum links: sampling techniques, data manipulation and handling, data presentation, scientific attitudes and experimental skills, ecosystems, classification, statistical tests

Put down mats to monitor reptiles and amphibians in your grounds Build a compost heap and a log pile Put down mats to monitor reptiles and amphibians again Time of year: Spring/Summer terms Equipment: carpet tiles, rubber gloves, camera, logs, compost, species identification guide Curriculum links: sampling techniques, data manipulation and handling, data presentation, scientific attitudes and experimental skills, statistical tests

None of these for you? Go back to the project finder to look for something a bit different.