Education Minister Evarist Bartolo joined a school visit to Għadira nature reserve to show his support for Birdlife Malta’s learning through nature programme.

The minister joined pupils from Mellieħa Primary School as they explored Għadira nature reserve, discovering wildlife, taking part in sensory activities and creating art from materials found in nature. The children then delivered presentations about their visit, telling Bartolo what they had enjoyed about their visit to the nature reserve.

Bartolo said: “It is vitally important for young people to have these opportunities to explore and discover nature, to understand the natural world around them.”

Birdlife Malta took the occasion to present a new activity booklet which will be given to every child who visits one of its nature reserves on a school visit. The booklet, which includes activities for children to complete at home with their family, has been developed with funding from the European Commission Representation in Malta.

Presenting the booklets to the pupils, Theresa Zahra, head of the EC Representation in Malta, said: “We are delighted to support Birdlife Malta and their outdoor learning programme. We hope our inolvement allows many more children and their families to be inspired about our natural world.”

Birdlife Malta field teacher Jason Aloisio said: “We welcome thousands of pupils to our nature reserves every year, teaching them to explore and discover nature by taking part in exciting, hands-on activites.

“Now, with this new activity booklet, that learning does not need to stop when they leave our reserve. They can continue to enjoy activities at home with their whole family.”

Birdlife Malta school visits are delivered in collaboration with the Directorate for Quality and Standards in Education (DQSE) and are available for both primary and secondary school students.

Curriculum-linked visits for schools are part of the Erasmusplus-funded project Lifelong Learning through Nature.