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The JSC “Latvia’s State Forests” with the Rīga Teika Secondary School in 2012 started a project together – during the Forests Days a pine forest was planted. The trees have grown and now students have a new long-term educational challenge ahead of them – together with LVM experts perform regular research in the 4.4 hectare young forest stand in the Vēri forest district that they have planted and observe how the future's forest is growing.

“Projects is planned to be an event of several decades. Students have a chance to learn about forest and forestry, to understand the natural laws of nature. These measurements of selected sample plots will be performed on regular basis, each year. Forest is teaching us on every step that we make – we just have to learn how to listen and see!” says the LVM senior expert Kaspars Riže.

To see how forest, that you have planted, is growing is a real adventure for students. Moreover, the project “School's Forest” offers a possibility to follow the growth rate of little trees by measuring them and putting down results about trees and ground cover and analysing their changes over several years, this information will be used by students as a foundation to their scientific research works.

“It’s cool to learn more about the nature. It is very interesting to see how many different species grow in one little spot on the ground,” one of the students points out.

The practical applications of knowledge – to count, measure, draw and analyse

On 13 September, 32 students from Rīga Teika Secondary School's 5th-11th grades together with their teachers and LVM forest experts went to the young stand that they planted. They had a lot to do – firstly they had to select sample plots, then ] count trees found in them and to identify species of these trees, count the trees of each species and to mark the location of trees in the scheme of sample plots. Then each tree was measured and data were written down.

In the sample plots of ground cover, the diversity of species was determined – number of individuals was counted. Also samples of plants were collected for herbarium, which will be used and analysed by students in biology and natural science lessons.

“It is very interesting to see how much have our planted trees grown. Besides, a real revelation is the multiple works and information that can be obtained in our young stand,” says one of the participants of project “School’s Forest”.

Students, surely, liked this day. They didn’t complain that they had to go to forest and leave the usual school desk. They say that they had a great time in a fresh air and learnt something new and unusual. For example, how much can tree grow in one year or how to find north by using the sun.

Teachers are satisfied with the collaboration and the course of the project

Teachers, as well, didn't hide their joy about the experienced. “It is so cool to look at something that we think we know from different angle. And to know that our students can cope with the specific tasks,” gladly says teacher Liene Binde.

Teachers admit – such lessons in nature give a great opportunity to create cooperation in informal atmosphere, allowing getting to know each other from a different side.    To their mind, it is excellent that this project involves students of various ages, which gives an opportunity to gain new friends also from other classes.

“It is wonderful to see that students from different classes are working together to get to a set goal, how they delegate responsibilities among each other, how they communicate, help each other and support each other. In particular, it is very pleasant to see that the oldest students don’t exclude the youngest, thinking that they are too little and can’t know/do much, but just the opposite – they supported the youngest ones, encouraged them and the little fifth graders felt excellent and were very satisfied about their participation and the work that they had put in,” teacher Sigita Ļemantoviča observed.

The practical usage of knowledge in nature

The director of Rīga Teika Secondary School encourages other schools also to learn in nature. Until now, one of the greatest accomplishments of the school’s and LVM collaboration memorandum has been the possibility to participate in the environmental education programme “Learning about Forests” and together with students and their families to participate in forest planting, but at the moment school has entered a new project “School’s Forest”, during which students in a guidance of LVM experts and teachers have started a research of the forest that they planted.

“It is important that children see the practical usage of knowledge in nature. The skills of scientists are developed It is interesting that children of different age groups are participating in the project at the same time. Children are collaborating just like in families – as “brothers and sisters” and together they learn to notice, measure, count and understand. This is a long-term project, thus, students will have a chance to learn profoundly and have a better understanding of how forest is growing,” explains the director.

Children from city have a possibility to study in nature. “In the contrast to nature’s consumer philosophy, an understanding about the processes of nature are developed, and with it, an understanding that nature has to be conserved. Lessons in forest are the most valuable for us. In forest we organise very a serious, but at the same time, very interesting learning process, where children themselves are working and researching, but nature is the best teacher,” says the director of school.