Spodnja Šiška, Ljubljana, Slovenia
From the beginning of March till the end of April, the 5th graders from
elementary school Spodnja Šiška learnt about different animal and plant
species in the woods in the vicinity of the school as well as in Ljubljana
(Rožnik, Rašica). We visited Notranjski park in April. We saw various
animal and plant species which we cannot find in cities.
In March, the woods are still dominated by grey and brown colours, but
as the temperature rises and daylight prolongs, the forest ground turns
into bright colours. The first flowers that blossom at the edge of the forest, as soon as the snow melts, are snowdrop, snowflakes and primrose. We learnt how
naming plants is connected with folk tradition and usage of plants in
everyday life.
Slika 1: Primrose (Trobentica
– Primula Vulgaris)
Slika 2: Snowdrop (Mali zvonček –
Galanthus nivalis)
Slika 3: Snowflake
(Veliki zvonček ali
kronica –
Leucojum vernum)
A few weeks later a variety of flowers on the forest ground is much bigger. We saw wood anemone, crocus,
dogtooth violet, early dog-violet, liverwort, alternate-leaved golden-saxifrage and coltsfoot.
At our last observation we also saw forget-me-not, blueberries, wild strawberries, meadow buttercup and by the stream, marsh marigold. At the same time the first leaves on the deciduous trees sprouted, beech tree the most. Leaves on the oak tree and chestnut are also recognizable shapes.
At the same time the first leaves on the deciduous trees sprouted, beech tree the most. Leaves on the oak tree and chestnut are also recognizable shapes.
As the spring blossoms, we can find more and more animals. We can hear different bird species that sing different songs. Titimouse, blue tit, siskin and jay are resident birds. If we listen carefully, we can hear great clover, that searches for insect larvae under the bark.
Cucko (Kukavica – Cuculus canorus)
In the undergrowth we can see ants, spiders and other insects.
In Notranjski park, we saw the little grebe, grey heron and cormorant. We also saw humpback swan and wild duck, which we know from ponds, small lakes and rivers in Ljubljana.
Simultaneously with other activities, we observed daylight lenghth and weather phenomena. From 21 December till 21 March daylight prolonged for 4 hours, from March till 21 June for two hours and a half more. This year, spring in Ljubljana has been one of the warmest. We had a lot of sun and very litte rain.
At the end of the project, we made “stitched pictures”.
By learning in nature, pupils got to know biodiversity in the school district and Ljubljana. We learnt, that in our city centre we have many plant and animal species that they had not paid attention to until now. At the end of our project pupils learnt the importance of environmental protection and conservation of biodiversity.
Teachers in Ljubljana
Katja Winkler
