A UK outdoor education charity which has two centres in Cumbria is set to go live with a series of online environmental fieldwork lessons for schoolchildren.

The Field Studies Council, which has branches in Blencathra and Castle Head, will take part in a series of live online fieldwork lessons in geography and science all week, starting from today.

So far more than 255,000 school children have registered to join in across the UK and from around the world.

FSC chief executive Mark Castle said: “It’s magnificent to see such a positive response to these new online fieldwork lessons. It demonstrates that many teachers and young people are both committed and curious about the environment, which is terrific.

“This is a challenging time for everybody and not least teachers, parents and schoolchildren, the majority of whom will be returning to a home-schooling set-up now the Easter break is over.

“We would usually be heading into the busiest period of the year welcoming hundreds of schools to our field study centres for a range of environmental courses, but with centres closed we have devised these lessons so we can continue to support pupils, teachers, schools and parents.”

“The widespread interest in them signals what we believe is a very strong willingness for continued learning about the environment. It also shows a continued commitment from schools and teachers to support the learning of students by providing and signposting remote learning opportunities such as #fieldworklive to their students.”

The high-level of interest in the newly launched virtual sessions not only demonstrates young people’s continued commitment to the environment but also indicates a ‘strong willingness’ to learn at home whilst schools and colleges remain closed to the majority of pupils during the coronavirus pandemic.

The new #fieldworklive lessons in geography and science are being run by UK leading outdoor education charity the Field Studies Council in partnership with global learning provider Encounter Edu.

Lessons will be delivered by expert tutors via YouTube Live and run for two weeks until May 1.

There will be options for children of all ages, from primary children to those taking GCSEs and A-levels.

The majority of children taking part are based in the UK but the FSC said sessions are also attracting interest from the USA, Tanzania, Singapore, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Vietnam and Switzerland.

The #fieldworklive sessions aim to provide fun, interactive and immersive fieldwork opportunities in geography and science-related subjects and they will bring learning to life to support young people explore the world around the them.

Online lessons are being supported by resource packs which teachers can use to help prepare students and follow-up webinars will also be available for teaching staff.

Further details about can be found at www.field-studies-council.org/2020/03/31/fsc-fieldworklive/ and the FSC YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/user/FieldStudiesCouncil.

For primary children, the fieldwork lessons will focus on soil, habitat and creative exploration. Secondary school sessions will look at weather, climate and freshwater ecosystems whilst GCSE/National 4/5 students (aged 14-16) will investigate quality of life in urban areas and coastal management.

For students progressing between GCSE/National 4/5 studies and A-Levels/Highers the live fieldwork lessons will look at rocky shore ecology, hydrology and flooding, as well as investigating places.

Each year, more than 150,000 people experience teaching and learning through the FSC’s 27 learning locations and its publications and education resources help many more to get outside.

Despite current circumstances, the FSC remains determined to continue inspiring people to be curious, knowledgeable and passionate about the environment.

The FSC, which operates a network of residential field study centres around the UK, closed its doors in March in line with Government guidance on the Covid-19 outbreak.