Our pre-school children recently enjoyed their second STEM session with Eleanor Hutcheon from UHI Shetland. This time, the workshop focused on two important topics: recycling and renewable energy.

Using a colourful play mat designed as a miniature town, the children explored how communities can look after the environment. Through hands-on play, they sorted pictures of everyday items into the correct recycling bins, thinking about what materials they were made from. This fun activity helped the children to understand where rubbish should go and why recycling is important for protecting our planet.

‘Food goes in the compost bin.’

‘I have recycling bins at home.’

‘The scarf goes in the clothes bin.’

The children also learned about renewable energy. Eleanor showed us how solar panels capture energy from the sun and how wind turbines use the power of the wind to generate electricity. After discussing where these might work best, the children added solar panels and wind turbines to different parts of the miniature town.

‘Solar panels go on the roof.’

‘I don’t have any on my roof.’

‘The fan made a lot of wind.’

‘The windmills go on the hill.’

We also talked about how people sometimes have different opinions about wind turbines. While they create clean energy, some people feel they can affect the landscape and change the look of Shetland’s beautiful scenery. This helped the children begin to understand that communities often have to think carefully about how they use their environment.

Through play, discussion and exploration, the children were able to learn that small actions such as recycling and using renewable energy can make a positive difference to the world around them.

It was a fun and engaging session that introduced important STEM concepts in a way that the children could understand. We would like to say a big thank you to Eleanor for another fantastic workshop. 🌍 ♻️ ⚡